Avatar Off Center
by MontagJ
Summary: This is the world of "Avatar: The Last Airbender"… But just a little bit off…  Rating may change.
1. The Avatar and the Fire Lord

My other Avatar fanfic is shaping up like The Last Airbender, so I'm gonna try again with a different approach. This story is based off the premise that the events of the TV series were the "correct" sequence of events, but some of the events shift from their natural location on the timeline. (It makes perfect sense to me!) It may not seem very original at first, but by the end of this prolog, you'll find this not to be the story you know so well. If you get bored with the first part, you can skip it if you want. With that, I present to you "Off Center."

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Part 1: The Avatar…

Deep in the wilds of the South Pole, two young teens floated aimlessly in a canoe. The elder, a young man, held his whale-tooth spear aloft. "Just watch, Katara," Sokka said, "this is how you catch a fish."

Katara, the boy's younger sister, rolled her eyes. She ungloved her hand and waved it above the water. A volume of the liquid rose up in a glowing sphere. Inside swam a fish. "Sokka, look."

"Shh," he scolded, "you'll scare them away!"

"But look, Sokka," Katara continued, "I got one!"

"Katar-"Sokka started. As he got up from his crouching position the back of the spear poked the bubble of water. It spilled onto his head and set the fish free. "How is it that every time _you_ play with magic water, _I _get soaked?" he fumed.

"It's not magic," his sister corrected, "it's Waterbending. It's an ancient art form unique to our culture and –"

"And completely forbidden!" Sokka finished. Katara's head fell. She knew he was right, as much as she hated to admit it. "You remember what happened the last time they caught you, right?" Katara nodded grimly. "Good. Then no more magic water."

"It's Waterbending!"

"Whatever."

Suddenly the canoe lurched forward caught in one of the rapids that snaked through the glaciers. Shards of floating ice crashed together threatening to crush the canoe and its occupants. Sokka paddled furiously to keep him and his sister alive. The fjord was cluttered and large chunks of ice slammed into the sides of the canoe.

"Watch out!" Katara cried. "Go left, go left!"

The ice narrowed until there was nowhere to go. The siblings leapt out of their canoe and onto a large chunk of ice just before the vessel was crushed.

"You call that left?"

"You don't like my steering?" Sokka snarled, "well, maybe you should have Waterbended us out of the ice." He gestured mockingly.

"So it's my fault?"

"I knew I should have left you at home! Leave it to a girl to screw things up!"

Katara's anger boiled. Her glare turned harsh as she stared at her brother. "You are the most sexist; immature- ugh. I'm embarrassed to be related to you." She gestured as she ranted causing the water and ice around her to react. A huge crack appeared in the ice berg behind her which caught Sokka's attention. "Ever since Mom died I have been doing all the work around camp while you've been off playing soldier!" The crack widened. Sokka tried to get her attention but she ignored him. "I even wash all the clothes," she continued. "Have you ever smelled one of your dirty socks? Let me tell you: NOT PLEASANT!" She put special emphasis on that, throwing her arms up and back. This caused even greater damage to the ice berg behind her.

"Katara!" Sokka pleaded, "Settle down!"

"No! That's it! I am done helping you! From now on you're on your own!" Another flare of her arms and the ice shattered catastrophically.

When their ice island settled Sokka glared angrily over at Katara. "See? This is exactly what I'm talking about."

"You mean… _I _did that?" the young Waterbender gasped.

"Yup. Congratulations."

The water began to glow and bubble. A sphere of ice shot out of the water and settled in front of them. Inside were two figures. One of them, a monk apparently meditating, opened his glowing eyes.

"He's alive!" Katara gasped. She made her way closer to the strange sight. "We have to help!"

"Katara, get back here! We don't know what that thing is," Sokka warned.

Katara ignored him and, using the war club she took from him, struck the ice. Finally, the surface broke and a blast of air rushed out. The entire top half of the ice cocoon exploded with an incandescent blue light.

When the fog that was also released cleared, Sokka and Katara saw the monk standing on the shattered walls of his former prison. His eyes and arrow tattoos glowed bright white. After a moment the glow faded and he passed out.

He fell slowly, like he was falling through water. Katara caught him as he fell. Sokka jabbed the monk's bald head with the back of his spear until Katara commanded he stopped.

Finally, the monk awoke. "I need to ask you something," he whispered to Katara. "Please come closer…"

"What is it?"

Suddenly the monk's face brightened. "Will you go penguin sledding with me?"

"Uh, sure, I - I guess," was all she could think to say.

The monk seemed to levitate to his feet which startled Sokka. "What's going on here?"

"You tell us!" Sokka demanded. "How'd you get in the ice? And why aren't you still frozen?"

"I'm not sure…" Then the group heard a low, steady rumbling. The monk gasped and climbed the ice wall. When he got to the other side, he found his companion. A huge white and gray cross between a bison and a manatee, "Appa, are you all right?" he asked as he hugged it. "Wake up buddy." Sokka and Katara walked around the hole in the ice wall just in time to see the monk's efforts to wake the creature succeed. "You're okay!"

"What is that thing?" Sokka asked.

"This is Appa, my flying bison."

"Right. And this is Katara, my flying sister."

Appa immediately sneezed on Sokka.

"Don't worry, it'll wash out." That didn't seem to console Sokka much. "So, do you guys live around here?"

"Don't answer that," Sokka warned, suddenly back in the conversation. "Did you see that crazy bolt of light? It's probably some kind of signal to the Fire Navy."

"Oh yeah. I am sure he is a spy for the Fire Navy," Katara said sarcastically, "you can tell by the _evil_ look in his eye." The monk grinned goofily to prove her point. "The paranoid one is my brother, Sokka. You never told us your name."

"I'm…ah…" he started. Suddenly he sneezed. Only instead of losing a blast of green slime, he shot into the air like a rocket. When he landed (on his feet!) he finished, saying, "I'm Aang."

"You just sneezed," Sokka stammered, "and flew ten feet in the air!"

"Really? It felt higher than that."

"You're an Airbender!" Katara realized.

"Sure am!"

"Giant light beams, flying bison, Airbenders," Sokka grumbled, "I think I have midnight sun madness. I am going home to where stuff makes sense." He stopped, remembering where he was.

"Well, if you guys are stuck," Aang offered, "Appa and I could give you a lift." He then Airbended himself onto Appa's head.

"We'd love a ride. Thanks," Katara said happily.

Sokka was considerably less enthusiastic. "I am not getting on that fluffy snot monster. "

"Are you hoping some other kind of monster will come and give you a ride home?" Katara teased. "You know, before you freeze to death?"

Sokka wanted to protest, but there was nothing to say.

"Okay, first time flyers, hold on tight," Aang announced happily. "Appa! Yip-yip!" Appa lifted his tail, than dropped it, propelling him into the air. He immediately dropped back into the sea.

"Wow," Sokka said in probably the least enthusiastic voice anyone could manage, "That was truly amazing."

"Appa's just tired," Aang reasoned, "A little rest, and he'll be soaring through the sky in no time, you'll see." He said it more to Katara, who had moved to the front of the saddle.

Katara began to turn around, but stopped when she noticed Aang watching her. "Why are you smiling at me like that?"

"Oh, I was smiling?"

Sokka was again, less than amused.

Later, as the sun began to tuck behind the fjords, or would have if they weren't on the pole, Katara moved back to the edge of the saddle to address her chuffer. "Hey."

Hey," Aang returned dreamily, "Whatcha thinking about?"

"I guess I was just wondering, you being an Airbender and all, if you had any idea what happened to the Avatar."

"Uhhh, no." Aang started mumbling something about knowing people that knew him, but Katara didn't think too much of it.

That night, Aang and Appa were swept under a wave. Aang lost grip of Appa's rains, his eyes began to glow, the water began to freeze…

"Aang, Aang, wake up!"

A dream… Aang got ready just as Katara dragged him out of the tent he was in. Outside, he saw about twenty people in a semi-circle around him, all kids, women, and elderly.

"Aang, this is the entire village," Katara introduced cheerfully, "Entire village, Aang."

Aang bowed politely, but the villagers just seemed to be somewhere between scared and confused.

"Uh, why are they all looking at me like that?" Aang whispered to Katara, "Did Appa sneeze on me?"

One of the older women spoke up. "Well, no one has seen an Airbender in a hundred years. We thought they were extinct."

"Extinct?"

"Aang, this is my grandmother," Katara explained.

"Call me Gran Gran."

Suddenly, a huge, iron-clad warship loomed over the village.

"Aang, hide!" Katara said just as she pushed him inside one of the tents.

* * *

Part 2: … and the Fire Lord

On a luxurious iron-clad warship, a young man in glittering armor stared at a strange blue light that shown in the distance.

"My Lord," the ship's captain addressed, "What is that?"

"I don't know…" he flicked some of his long black hair out of his golden eyes.

"Perhaps it's a trick of the sun, or the celestial lights?" an older, well fed man in red robes questioned.

"Perhaps."

"Still," the captain began warily, "what if it's something important?"

"Like what?" the teen asked with just the slightest hint of warning in his voice.

"Like… the Avatar?"

The older man let out a hearty laugh.

"You know better," the young man said. "The Avatar doesn't exist. A useless relic of a forgotten age."

"Ah, but is it so easily forgotten?" the elder said. "Perhaps a quick search for the Avatar would be a welcome distraction."

"I don't need any distractions," the young man replied as calmly as he could. "I have too many issues to address to get distracted by some fool's errand."

"Like the refugee issue?"

"Yes."

"Fire Lord Zuko," the elder said in a tired tone, "You have been pushing yourself too hard. Please, sit and have yourself a calming cup of jasmine tea."

"I don't need any calming tea!" Zuko exploded. He calmed himself, pinching the bridge of his nose. Uncle always did know just what buttons to push, he thought.

"My Lord?" the captain asked, waiting for orders.

"No detours," he finally said. The captain nodded and left.

Much later, Zuko's Uncle approached his nephew on the observation deck of his flagship, the Obstinate. "I'm going to bed now," he said. Zuko ignored him. The elder let out a big yawn. "Yup, a man needs his rest." No response. "Fire Lord Zuko, you need some sleep."

"Sleep is a waste of time," Zuko said finally.

"Zuko, a candle only has so much wax. If you leave it lit too long, it will burn out." There was a weight to Uncle's voice, like he had said it a dozen times. He had.

"I appreciate your wisdom, Uncle," Zuko assured, "But now isn't the time for one of your proverbs."

"What do you expect to do for the refugees out here?" Uncle almost demanded.

"Think of a plan. Think of a way to fix their problems."

The next morning, or what would be morning, Zuko was on the deck of his Obstinate, surrounded by soldiers in special uniforms, his personal guard. Suddenly, fire flew all over the deck. Zuko ducked, weaved, and counterattacked. All his opponents lay defeated.

"Excellent, Fire Lord Zuko," Uncle praised, "You are more than ready for the next ser."

"No," Zuko sighed, "_she_ wouldn't have made those mistakes." His Uncle sighed. "Finish your roast duck, I'm going to drill this one again."

To the elation of his guard, the captain arrived to tell them they had arrived at their destination; the Southern Water Tribe!

* * *

So, are you glad you read all the way through? This story is vastly different from the show, with twists you'll never see coming! I'll get back to work on my other projects soon, but my YouTube account has been taking up much of my time. As for my other Avatar fic, its fate is still up in the air. Please, give me your opinions, I kind of need them.


	2. Reach of the Empire

I don't know what it is about this story. I like it, I have ideas for it, and it ties in to some of my other stories (sort of). Yet for some reason I've been avoiding it like the plague! I really don't know why it's so hard for me to write for this. Well, between my new schedule and this next chapter, perhaps I'll get more to work on this. So this is chapter 2 of Off Center. Once again, it's mostly similar, but this is where the rift begins to form. Hope you enjoy.

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Water, Earth, Fire, Air. Long ago each of the four nations lived together in harmony. The peace was shattered 100 years ago a comet came and the Fire Nation used its power to start a war that swallowed up the entire world. Many generations were lost to the horrors of war. It seemed as though it would never end… Until two years ago. "Sozen's Comet" returned, and with it, the power the Fire Nation needed to finish their conquest of the world. With the Earth Kingdom capitol city captured months earlier by them prince Zuko, there was no one left to resist. The world was united under one crimson flag. The flag of the Fire Empire. Only the Avatar, master of all four elemental bending arts, could have the strength to rise up and oppose the ruthless Phoenix King. But he was long gone. The Avatar hadn't been seen in over 100 years. Many believed that the reincarnation cycle had been broken. Broken – just like the world the Avatar left behind.

"My name is Zuko," an angry looking young man with a burn scar over his left eye and in black armor announced. The twenty or so villagers of the Southern Water Tribe cringed at his harsh words. "I, as some of you may know, am the Fire Lord of the East. I have many duties and responsibilities. Unfortunately, one of them is all of you."

Aang watched from one of the tents as Gran-Gran stepped forward. "What is it that you want with us?" she asked in the kind of harsh tone an elder takes with a young man.

"This village was given a simple task by my father-"

"It's not so simple to us," Gran-Gran sniped, "We are a village of hunters and fishermen, not miners."

Zuko's temper flared. He threw a blast of fire against one of the tents. It was obliterated instantly. Aang had seen enough and leapt from his hiding place.

"That's enough!" he announced.

Several of Zuko's guard surrounded Aang. "Who do you think you are to command me?" Zuko angrily demanded.

Aang looked nervously around at his opponents. "Aang… Don't…" Katara pleaded quietly.

Aang thought hard. He fixed his gaze on Zuko. "I'm the Avatar. Now leave these people alone!" Everyone was shocked and murmured amongst themselves.

Zuko remained deathly silent. He watched this "Avatar" closely for any sign of hesitation. Any weakness. This was a child. An unassuming child, even! But… "You're serious, aren't you?" The chatter stopped.

"Aang…?" Katara breathed.

That set off one of Zuko's guard who was standing near her. He whirled around, "Be quiet!" On that note, he attacked.

Aang reacted swiftly. He leaped over the firebender and deflected the flame. "Don't you **dare** touch her!" He blasted his opponent with a violent gust from his staff. The firebender was too stunned to do anything but be blown away by the wind. "I told you to leave this village in peace! I won't ask you again!"

Zuko laughed. It was a kind of… care-free and light laugh. Of course, he was laughing at the Avatar. It was that fact that sent chills down everyone's spines, even the Imperial troops. "That's fantastic!" Zuko said, clapping lightly, "What an amusing performance."

"I'm serious!" Aang protested, not really knowing how to react.

"Oh, well that's different," Zuko said sarcastically. "Men, kill him."

Firebenders attacked from all directions. Aang countered every blow, but the battle put the villagers behind him in grave danger.

"If I surrender," Aang asked, "Would you leave this village?"

Zuko thought. The wait was agonizing for everyone. Finally, he nodded. Aang handed his staff to one of the firebenders while another lead him towards the ship.

"Aang, don't do this…" Katara pleaded.

"Don't worry Katara," he assured, already up the gangplank, "Everything will be just fine." He tried to smile, but it faded just before he disappeared behind the ship's railing.

After the ordeal, the members of the Water Tribe started the clean-up from their "kind" sovereign's visit. By now they were as used to the Empire's occasional visits as they'd ever be. And besides, not much was destroyed this time.

Katara and Sokka were just outside the village where Zuko's ship had been docked. "We have to go after that ship, Sokka," Katara said strongly, not noticing her brother currying supplies behind her. "Aang saved our tribe, now we have to save him."

"Katara, I-"

"Why can't you see he's on our side? If we don't help him no one else will! I know you don't like Aang, but we owe him an-"

"Katara!" Sokka nearly shouted to stop his sister's rant. "Are you going to talk all day or are you coming with me?" he asked, gesturing toward his canoe.

"Sokka!" she gasped happily, hugging him.

"Get in. We're going to save your boyfriend."

"He's not my-"

Whatever…"

"What do you two think you're doing?" Gran-Gran asked, appearing behind them. When they both smiled innocently she held out a pair of rolled up sleeping bags and told them with a smile of her own, "You'll need these. You have a long journey ahead of you." Katara and Sokka exchanged surprised looks. "It's been a long time since I've had hope…" she said as she embraced her granddaughter, "but you've brought it back to life, my little waterbender." She handed her the sleeping bags and turned to Sokka. "And you, my brave warrior," she said hugging him as well, "Be nice to your sister."

"Yeah," Sokka sighed, "Okay, Gran…"

"Aang is the Avatar. He is the world's last hope for freedom. You both found him for a reason. Now your destinies are intertwined with his."

Katara turned to their only means of transportation. "There's no way we'll catch that warship with a canoe." Appa appeared from behind the village's snowy walls (where he had spent the turbulent day so far. Katara happily ran toward him.

"You just _love_ taking me out of my comfort zone… don't you?"

"So," Iroh said, eyeing Aang, "the Avatar, huh?"

"Uh, yeah."

"You've put me in an awkward position, Avatar," Zuko said in an unreadable tone as he inspected the airbending staff.

"Sorry for living," Aang mumbled.

"Take him to the brig. And take this," Zuko said handing Aang's staff to his uncle,"to my quarters."

As soon as Zuko turned his back to leave, Iroh turned to the nearest soldier and asked "You mind taking this to his quarters for me?"

Aang was lead down into the bowels of Zuko's ship. Arms tied and lead by two of Zuko's deadliest guard to the ship's brig.

"So," Aang said lightly, "I bet you've never fought an airbender before. I bet I could take you both with my hands tied behind my back!"

"Silence," one of them commanded briskly.

Aang waited for the guard in front to place the key in the lock of what was to be his cell's door before blasting them both with a gust of wind made by his breath. He quickly ran off and escaped.

Aang dashed down the winding maze-like steel halls of the Fire Empire battleship. Quickly he came across a group of sword-wielding guards who had been alerted to his escape. "You haven't seen my staff around, have you?" The soldiers readied themselves to attack, but Aang literally ran circles around them, dashing up the walls and on the sealing to get around them. "Thanks anyway." The soldiers were too stunned to pursue.

After just a few more turns he came upon a firebender. The firebender was quickly lost behind a jet of flames. Aang was more than nimble enough to leap over his opponent's attack and orient himself so that the ropes binding his hands got caught on the firebender's helmet spike, breaking the bond. Aang quickly searched each of the rooms he came across for his staff. In one room he found the sleeping Iroh. "Sorry," he whispered before he quietly shut the door.

Finally he saw it in a modest-looking room near the middle of the bridge tower. He hurried in and retrieved his staff, but when he turned to leave, Zuko had appeared in the doorway.

"I underestimated you," Zuko said calmly, shutting the door behind him. "I don't make the same mistakes twice!"

Aang was barely able to keep himself alive during Zuko's ferocious assault. There were too many close calls to count, but Zuko was losing his peasants at his inability to pin Aang down. Finally, Zuko started making mistakes and Aang, using Zuko's own sleeping mat, plastered him to the wall, then the sealing. When Zuko looked up, to his fury, Aang was gone.

Aang made his way to the bridge. Once he got outside he happily leaped into the clear blue sky with his glider. But Zuko roared after, dragging him down to the deck of his ship by the ankle. As they both got up, Appa appeared on the horizon.

"What is that?" Zuko questioned.

"Appa!" Aang cried happily. But soon he was warding off Zuko's deadly flames again. After only a few strikes, Aang lost his staff and was forced off the side of the ship and into the water.

"Aang, no! Katara cried from atop Appa's head, still some distance away. Her voice seemed to echo through Aang's semi-conscious mind. "Aang! Aang! Aang!"

Suddenly Aang's eyes snapped open. They glowed white like his arrow tattoos. He spiraled through the water towards the surface. He rose with a column of water and landed with it on the deck of Zuko's ship in a ring around him. Zuko and his men were too stunned to move as the water slammed them against the wall lining the ship's deck. I few of them, including Zuko, were even sent over the side by the torrent.

"Did you see what he just did?" Katara asked in shock.

"Now _that_ was some waterbending!" Sokka agreed.

Aang collapsed as the glow faded. Katara and Sokka rushed over to him as soon as Appa landed. "Hey Katara… Hey Sokka… Thanks for coming."

"Well, I couldn't let you have all the glory," Sokka smiled.

"I dropped my staff."

"Got it," Sokka said as he quickly rushed to get it.

Most of the soldiers had gotten up by now and were approaching Katara who had just laid Aang down on Appa's head. She tried to waterbend at them, but ended up freezing Sokka's feet to the deck behind her.

"Katara!"

As Sokka tried to free his feet with the sharp edge of his boomerang, Katara turned her back on the approaching soldiers. With her eyes shut she tried the same move again. When she turned around she saw the almost half-dozen Imperial soldiers frozen solid. One was mere millimeters from grabbing her by her shirt collar.

Sokka was finally able to free his feet from the ice and ran to Appa with Aang's staff, grumbling the whole way. They took off as soon as Sokka had climbed aboard. Iroh groggily appeared on deck just in time to see Appa lift off.

Iroh helped Zuko back on board (he had been climbing the anchor chain). "Shoot them down!" Zuko ordered. He and his uncle attacked together, launching a single largish fireball at the escaping bison. Aang had recovered by them and, using his staff, deflected the fireball into the nearby glacier, causing it to collapse on the ship.

"Good news for the Phoenix King," Iroh said with just a twinge of bitterness at the phrase "Phoenix King", "The Fire Empire's greatest threat… is just a little kid."

"That 'kid', Uncle, just did this," Zuko turned to his men. "Dig the ship out and follow them." He noticed his firebenders thawing the troops Katara froze. "As soon as you're done with that. And Captain."

"Yes, Fire Lord Zuko?"

"Send one of the nearby governors to subjugate the Southern Water Tribe in my stead. Someone… less than merciful."

"Subjugate, sir?"

"Yes. Subjugate. They disobeyed the direct orders of my father. They harbored the enemy of the Empire. What would you call them other than rebels?"

"Fire Lord Zuko," Iroh addressed in a hard, almost warning voice, "Isn't that… extreme?"

"Are these times not extreme? Do it Captain."

"Yes, your Excellency."

Zuko's gaze fell upon the horizon that Appa disappeared into. I'll find you, Avatar, Zuko thought coldly.

"How did you do that…?" Katara stammered, "…with the water? It was the most amazing thing I've ever seen!"

"I don't know," Aang answered distantly, "I just sort of… did it."

"Why didn't you tell us you were the Avatar?"

"Because… I never wanted to be." Aang stared off into space for a long moment. "I'm so confused. What going on? What happened while I was in that iceberg?" Katara and Sokka looked at each other, not sure where to start or how to answer. "Please, Katara. I need answers."

"Okay Aang," Katara said finally, "but I don't think you'll like what you're about to hear…"

That would turn out to be a grievous understatement…

* * *

Oh! That's why I'm so hesitant to write for this. It takes three or four days to get a single chapter done! But yeah, I think Off Center is starting to come into its own now. I'm actually fairly confident in my work here for once. If the pessimist in me can be silenced then there must be _something_ of worth here. I suppose I'll find out.

…

I'm going to be referring a lot of people to Duel 26 of _Darkness_, aren't I?


	3. Broken Home

Today is Friday the 9th. This is the day I'm supposed to release the next chapter of this story. I finished writing the hard copy roughly 16 hours ago. I am panicking right now. This chapter is the first part that diverges notably from the source material (which I did not expect.) All for the better I think. I hate it when people write fanfics during the main cannon and yet nothing changes. I forced myself into uncharted territory and I'm glad. Now I am slightly less of a hypocrite. (I have fanfic writing rules that I tend to break a lot…) I'm in a rare optimistic mood about this next chapter, so I'll stop stalling and get to it.

* * *

The entire world at war? The idea seemed preposterous. There was always conflict in the world. After all, that was why the Avatar was needed. But how could the whole world be at war? Even more absurd was that this war had recently ended with the destruction of all but the Fire Nation. The Fire "Empire" has taken over the world. It couldn't be.

Aang was lost in his stormy thoughts, Appa pointed towards their home; the Southern Air Temple. He tried not to wonder, "Is this my fault?"

"Aang?" Katara's voice broke into his thoughts. He looked up at Katara and Sokka. They were both watching him. He had said every incarnation of "no way" and "you're kidding" already. The cold reality was starting to sink in. This is really happening.

At some point it dawned on him that he should probably respond. But what do you say when you find yourself a century in the future with the world turned upside down? "Well," he finally got out, "what am I supposed to do?"

"We could start a resistance!" Sokka instantly proclaimed. "With you helping, I bet we could take down the whole Empire!"

"I can't start a war!" Aang exclaimed, "I'm a pacifist!"

"It's not a war, it's a revolution."

"A revolution _is_ a kind of war, Sokka," Katara informed her brother.

"Semantics…" he dismissed.

"Well, maybe I can talk to them…" Aang suggested.

"You can't talk to the Fire Empire," Sokka said, "They're ruthless savages!"

"That Zuko guy seemed pretty smart," Aang replied.

"He burned down our village!" Sokka shouted, "Twice!" Clearly, Aang had hit a sore spot.

"I hate to agree with Sokka on this," Katara started.

"Hey!"

"But nobody knows where the Phoenix King is. We wouldn't even know where to start looking."

"The Phoenix King?" Aang asked.

"He's the leader of the Empire," Sokka explained.

"Not the Fire Lord?"

"There's two of those now," Katara said, "Zuko is one of them."

"This is insane!" Aang said. A phrase that he had repeated many times that day. Being frozen in an iceberg was bizarre enough, but waking up more than 100 years later? A Fire Empire? The whole world under the control of some "Phoenix King"? This is impossible!

"Aang," Katara said his name again. "We need to decide what to do."

"Well… the monks told me I had to master the other elements," Aang replied, "First I've got to master waterbending."

"The only place you can do that is the North Pole," Sokka said.

"Why not the South Pole once the Fire Na- er… Empire… leaves?" Aang suggested. "We're practically there already."

"That's…" Katara started tensely.

That's not a good idea," Sokka said. Aang wanted to ask why, but he was no fool. His eyes asked Sokka for him. Katara was looking at her hands at the moment, so Sokka mouthed "Later."

"So… what are you two going to do?" Aang asked.

Katara looked up again. "What do you mean?" she questioned in return.

"Should I take you back to your home?"

"No way!" Sokka barked, "I want to help you take on the Empire!"

"But what about your family?"

Sokka hesitated for only a moment. "I want to go with you **because** of my family."

"And if you're going to the North Pole to learn waterbending, I'd love to come with you," Katara agreed. "Don't worry, we already talked to our Gran-Gran."

"Yeah. And if there's a problem, you can just take us back."

"Well in that case, we should get going," Aang said cheerfully. He hopped onto Appa's head to coax more speed out of his friend.

"Wait," Sokka said, "Do you know the way to the North Pole?"

"I was going to head to the Southern Air Temple." Aang thought for a moment. "I haven't cleaned my room in a hundred years," he realized, "Not looking forward to that!"

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Katara asked.

Aang looked back, "What do you mean?"

"The Fire Empire is ruthless," she told him, "I'm afraid of what you might find."

"You're worried about the monks?" She nodded. Aang smiled a bright, confident smile. "Don't worry about it. You can only get to an air temple with a sky bison. I bet even the Empire doesn't have any of those!"

"But-"

"We're almost there! The temple's just on the other side of this peek!"

As the peek left the children's view, Aang's eyes widened in abject horror. There was no Air Temple! It had been replaced by a new structure. One with a giant flame insignia built into the wall. Other things had been built onto the mountain. A platform was built around the mountain, giving more room to move around outside the rectangular, multi-level structure that replaced the temple. Two runways ran along either side of the building, also built out from the mountain. The one on the west side was long and narrow, the other on the east side was short and wide. The eastern one didn't stick out as far from the platform, which was round and large enough to hold dozens of people comfortably. The added space was supported by a system of strong steel supports weaved into a system of triangles and fixed to the mountain that made it incredibly solid.

Aang wasn't admiring the quality of the architecture. Fear, confusion, rage. Aang's mind raced with emotion. Sokka and Katara noticed movement on the former Air Temple below. They'd been spotted. The siblings tried to get Aang's attention, but all he did was stare wide-eyed at what was once his home. One of the Imperial soldiers addressed the stalled bison, his voice amplified by a mechanical speaker.

"Attention unidentified aircraft!" the soldier's voice boomed, "You have entered restricted airspace! Descend to lower altitude and leave the area immediately, or you will be made to! This is your only warning!" As the soldier spoke, two small bi-plane aircraft taxied onto the west runway while no less than three large airships rose from the valleys below.

Katara and Sokka tried to snap Aang out of his stupor, but it was the soldier that set him over the edge. His eyes and tattoos glowed a bright and angry white as he lost himself in his anger. He launched forward off Appa and toward the Imperial air base, surrounded by a sphere of fast-moving air. With but a simple gesture, Aang launched a rapid blade of air at each of the airships, slicing them open and causing them to descend rapidly back into the valleys of the mountain range. The two bi-planes were moving down the runway when Aang landed. The pilots barely had time to bail out before Aang blasted the aircraft into a nearby cliff side. Several soldiers attacked from all directions, mostly firebenders. Nether spear, nor sword, nor flame could penetrate Aang's swirling burrier. He blasted the hapless soldiers with air blasts for their trouble. Once he was done with the soldiers, he turned to the base. Using earthbending, he tore the building easily apart. Appa landed as rubble fell around Aang.

Katara leapt off Appa and ran to Aang, who was levitating some five feet off the ground. "Aang!" she called over the wind, "I can't imagine what you're going through! But you're not alone! You'll always have a home with us!" Aang lowered himself to the ground. Was he calming down?

Sokka arrived next to his sister. "That's right. We'll always be there for you," he promised, "We can make this right."

The glow died, than the wind. Aang collapsed into the siblings' arms. "How?" he asked, tears welling in his eyes, "How can we make this right?"

"We'll find a way," Katara said warmly.

"We'd better get going," Sokka said, noticing the bewildered soldiers gathering themselves. The siblings helped Aang onto Appa and took off with nary a fireball in pursuit.

"This is terrible…" Aang moaned.

"That's why we need to overthrow the Fire Empire," Sokka said.

"Not now, Sokka," Katara scolded

"No," Aang said pensively, "He's right. I'll help free the Earth Kingdom and the Southern Water Tribe."

"Thanks, Aang," Sokka said.

"But Sokka, I don't want to start a huge war. I just want to restore balance to the world."

"I understand. Let's just do our best!"

"But first," Katara interrupted, "We need to learn waterbending."

Optimism or confusion? Victory or failure? Life or death? What awaits them in this strange and unpredictable future? The architect of their altered fate watches from afar with baited breath.

* * *

The start was a little weak, lots of boring dialogue and questions. Exposition isn't exactly earth shattering entertainment. Overall though, I liked how it all turned out.

I stopped short of calling the two bi-planes "Galm Team", but yeah, yet another shameless reference to my personal obsession; air-to-air combat. But I'm not addicted. I can quit anytime I want. Really.


	4. A Long Way pt 1

After the last chapter I've kind of been given a little freedom in that I don't have to hold myself so close to the series. I can kind of move a little faster, which is good, because I have **once again** procrastinated and am working on this last minute!

* * *

There was a numbness in the air. The Air Temple was gone. Completely gone. It was more than just a home to Aang. After all, Aang was a nomad, he had many homes. But that Temple had been more than his birthplace. It held the history of his people. And the Air Nomads? There's no way they'd allow that to happen. Not if they were alive, anyway. The idea that his guardian and best friend Monk Gyatso was gone forever was unbearable. Aang thanked the spirits for his friends. They were what held him together. He'd known them, what? Two days? Three? And now they were the closest thing to family he had.

First thing to do was put some distance between themselves and the Fire Empire base. No need to pick a fight with a fleet of airships. They continued north. The North Pole was still their goal. Apparently it was the only place left on earth that the Empire didn't directly control. Too small a population and too strong a defense to warrant an attack. It was a long way there, though. Literally on the other side of the world. Aang set Appa down on an island late in the afternoon for a rest.

"Are you sure we can't keep going?" Sokka asked.

Katara jabbed him in the side as the three descended from the tall bison. "He just found out his home was destroyed," she half whispered, "Maybe he doesn't want to spend all day flying."

"Actually," Aang said in an almost cheery mood, "I stopped because I've always wanted to come here. I've always wanted to ride the giant koi fish that live in this bay."

"Seems like a waste of time to me…" Sokka mumbled, earning another sharp elbow from his sister.

"So you're not joining me?" Aang asked, already in his underwear.

"Uh… no thanks."

"Your loss," Aang shrugged as he dove head first into the deep bay's waters.

"Are you sure it's a good idea to stop here?" Sokka asked his sister as they watched Aang swim among, and eventually climb upon the giant red and yellow fish that began leaping about the bay.

"Can't you just let him have this?" Katara asked harshly, "He's been through a lot today."

"But what if there's an Imperial base on this island," Sokka returned with his usual bombast, "Or what if there's some sea monster in the bay?"

"Come on, Sokka," Katara dismissed, "What are the chances of…" They saw it about the same time. A dark, long shape snaking its way through the bay towards the koi. As it neared the giant, leaping fish, it pulled them under. It even dragged one out of the air, mid jump, without revealing itself. Katara called out to Aang, who was oblivious of the shape closing on the koi he was riding, but he was too far out. When they tried to divert his attention to the ever approaching thereat, he just thought they were waving to him.

It wasn't until the koi he was riding stopped short, throwing him across the bay that he noticed something was wrong. He righted himself in the water and looked up at the creature finally rising above the waves. A brown sea snake with long whiskers loomed over Aang. The creature was the same scale as the giant koi; each of its serrated teeth were the size of Aang's head. Aang decided the fact that he was close enough to make such observations was a bad sign. The creature lunged at Aang, but he had already made his escape. When it looked up again, it saw Aang reaching the beach, having run across the top of the water, airbending aiding in the cartoon-like escape. "Never heard of that thing…" Aang gasped to his friends as he started to dress. Unfortunately, he couldn't finish due to the monster blasting a jet of high-pressure water at the group. They ran down a nearby path to escape the attack, Aang bringing up the rear, still struggling with his clothes. "Could this day get any worse?" he asked, gasping for breath. Suddenly, they were swarmed on all sides. Only the flash of green uniforms before the entire group (minus Appa) was bound, blindfolded, and thrown to the ground.

"You just had to ask," Sokka growled, "_Didn't you?_"

The group was taken further down the path. Not being able to see disoriented them. By the time they were fixed to some kind of wooden post, they had no idea where they were. The blindfolds were stripped off briskly and the harsh light of the fading sun glared in the trio's eyes. Before them was a small village of simple wooden huts, the village's population scattered before them, and a group of young women with ornate face paint and dark green uniforms. "Where are we?" Sokka demanded, "And where are the men who attacked us?"

"There were no men," the first in the group of women stated, "We're the ones who attacked you."

Sokka scoffed loudly. "Yeah, right. There's no way I got beat by a bunch of girls."

"Do you _want_ to go for another swim with the Unagi?" the same girl snapped.

"Don't listen to my brother," Katara said quickly, "He's an idiot. He doesn't know what he's-"

"Enough," an older man, the mayor, said strongly. "Tell us. Who are you?"

"I bet they're Imperial spies!" the girl accused, mostly at Sokka.

"Why does everyone keep saying that?" Aang groaned, "Do I really look that much like a bad guy?"

"What Aang means to say," Katara started cautiously, "is that he's the Avatar."

"Impossible!" the mayor protests, "The Avatar has not been seen in well over a hundred years!"

"Aang," Katara whispered urgently, "Do some airbending…"

"Sure," he said cheerfully. A gust of wind propelled him into the air sharply, snapping the not unsubstantial ropes tethering him to the structure he could now see was a statue of a woman dressed like the girls now some feet below him. He did a few simple flips in the air before floating lazily down to the astonished village.

"It- it's true!" the mayor gasped, "you _are_ the Avatar!"

"Sure am!" Aang smiled.

Sokka and Katara were cut down and the group was treated to a feast. The village was elated by the Avatar's unexpected arrival. They even cleaned up the statue, a depiction of one of Aang's past lives as the Avatar, Avatar Kyoshi. Aang was treated like a celebrity here, and there was no Empire breathing down his neck. Things were finally looking up. Right?

* * *

Not so sure about this chapter. I think the time crunch hurt it. I suppose I'll find out. And to paraphrase Duel 26, do me a favor and tell me what I did wrong, not just "good chapter, update soon". I'm not perfect and my ego isn't all that fragile. If you review, give me an actual review. Good news is I get to work on Fire next (I think). Well, see you when I next see you.


	5. A Long Way pt 2

I've managed to paint myself into a corner yet again. I really need to stop doing that. I don't really know where I'm going with this either. Hopefully I can get inspired…

* * *

Not only did Aang and his friends get treated to the best this "Kyoshi Island" had to offer during their stay, they were also promised supplies when they were ready to leave. Of course, it would be hard to leave such a paradise. Or, paradise as far as everything else they'd encountered so far…

Aang had a particular affinity for Kyoshi. The island was named after one of his past lives and the residents (young children in particular) adored him. Katara expressed some worry over whether or not Aang was letting the adulation go to his head, but the monk dismissed them. Sokka seemed to be the only person on the island not enjoying himself. He spent his time sulking around the island for some silly reason. No coaxing from Aang, or the villagers, or even his sister would snap him out of his funk. He was even refusing food!

On a whim, Sokka decided to go to the Kyoshi dojo. It was where the warrior girls who… invited them to town… trained. He watched them as they practiced seemingly harmless stances and moves. All the girls wore the same oriental face paint, had the same green kimonos, and a pair of steel fans dressed up to look like gold. It wasn't long before their leader, Suki, noticed they had an audience.

"Sorry," Sokka said insincerely, "I didn't mean to interrupt your dance lesson. I was just looking for somewhere I could get a good work out." He started stretching as he spoke.

"Well you came to the right place," Suki informed. "Sorry about yesterday. I didn't know you were friends with the Avatar."

"That's okay," Sokka said confidently, "Normally I'd hold a grudge, but seeing as you're a bunch of girls, I'll let it go."

"I should hope so…" Suki sneered. She smiled as Sokka continued his strange stretching routine. "After all, against a big, strong man like you, we wouldn't stand a chance."

"Well, yeah," Sokka agreed, completely oblivious to Suki's sarcasm. "But don't feel bad. I **am** the best warrior in my village."

"The best warrior in his _whole_ village?" Suki patronized. Sokka was far too busy stroking his own ego to notice Suki's sarcasm, or mention that he was the only warrior in his village at the time… "What do you say, girls? How would you like to get a lesson from the best warrior from the Southern Water Tribe?" The other Kyoshi Warriors laughed at the notion, but again, Sokka missed the cue.

"Well… okay," Sokka agreed. "Now, this may be kind of hard, but _try_ to block me." Sokka threw a simple, and rather poorly executed punch. The attack was blocked by an even simpler gesture from Suki. She just poked Sokka's shoulder with her fan. It was more than enough to stop the punch. "Not bad…" Sokka complimented insincerely. "Of course, I was going easy on you," he added.

"Of course."

"Well… see if you can block **this**!" Sokka exclaimed as he tried to kick Suki in the head. She ducked calmly and, since her opponent was poorly balanced and on only one leg, she easily threw him to the ground. "That does it!" he snapped as he got up. He swung at Suki wildly, only managing to hit air. After two or three missed punches, she managed to steal his belt and used it to hogtie him while balanced on one leg. He tried to stay upright, but his hopping only served to make his landing harder.

"Anything else you'd like to teach us?" Suki asked confidently.

Meanwhile, Aang had spent the day goofing around with the dozen or so younger girls on the island. It left Katara to gather the supplies they had been promised the night before. It was not lost on her that she was the only one doing any actual work and she wasn't thrilled about it. It's not like she didn't expect this sort of thing from her brother, but normally Aang was more responsible.

"Hey, Katara," Aang hailed to the waterbender, who was purchasing fresh vegetables for the long journey to come.

"Great timing, Aang," she returned happily, "Could you help me with this basket? It's kind of heavy."

"Actually, I was going to take the girls for a ride on Appa," he said, backing up a half step and pointing over his shoulder.

"What's taking so long, Aangie?" one of the girls demanded.

"Aangie…" Katara noted distastefully.

"In a minute, Koko," the monk assured before turning back to Katara. "You should come with us!" Aang suggested happily, "It'd be more fun than carrying your heavy basket."

"These are supplies for our journey," Katara informed, "We'll need to go soon."

"But I don't want to leave yet!" Aang complained. He snuck a peek over his shoulder at the group of giggling girls behind him. "I can't put my finger on it, but there's something I really like about this place…"

"I thought you told me you wouldn't let this get to your head…" Katara said accusingly.

"I'm not. You know what I think? You're jealous!"

"Of what?"

"Jealous of all the fun we're having without you."

"That's ridiculous!"

"It _is_ pretty ridiculous. But I understand…"

"Whatever!" Katara scoffed and stormed away with her basket.

The sun was starting to sink when a much more humble Sokka approached the dojo. "Here for another dance lesson?" Suki asked accusingly.

"No, I…" Sokka fumbled for the right words and the courage to say them. He kneeled and bowed his head, "I would be honored if teach me."

"Evan though I'm a girl?" Suki asked, not convinced of his sincerity.

"I'm sorry if I insulted you earlier," Sokka said humbly, "I was wrong."

Suki was surprised when she caught herself actually considering it. "We rarely teach outsiders. Much less boys."

"Please make an exception."

Suki thought it over. "Alright. But you'll have to follow all of our traditions."

"Of course," Sokka agreed hopefully.

"And I mean _all_ of them."

It wasn't until he was in the kimono and face paint that Sokka caught on. "I look ridiculous!"

"That is a warrior's uniform. You should feel honored," Suki corrected, more amused than insulted. "The silk thread represents the brave warrior blood that runs through our veins," she explained, "and the gold seal represents our honor as warriors."

Sokka seemed to warm to the idea. "Bravery and honor, huh?"

"Hi Sokka," Aang said, popping his head in the door, "Nice dress!" Sokka deflated again, which Suki found very amusing. They grew serious and they began Sokka's instruction.

Aang was on the way to their room. There he found Katara practicing some simple waterbending. "Hey Katara," he said.

"Hey Aang," she returned without breaking her concentration on the water.

"Remember how the Unagi almost got me yesterday?"

"Yup."

"I'm going to go ride it! It'll be _really_ dangerous."

"Okay," she said with not a single inflection to be heard.

Aang was surprised by her reaction. "Aren't you going to try to stop me?"

"Nope. Have fun."

"Fine! I will!" he snapped. Just before he stormed out, he glanced back at her, missing her glance by just a moment.

Aang spent the rest of the afternoon treading water in the bay, waiting for the Unagi. After an hour or two, the girls got bored and started to go home. Just as Aang thought he had wasted an afternoon and put his life at risk for nothing, Katara appeared at the beach.

"I thought you weren't coming," Aang called to her.

"I was worried about you," she answered, "I came to see if you were okay."

"I'm sorry," he apologized after a moment of thought, "I _did_ let the attention get to my head. I acted like a jerk."

"Well come back in before you catch a cold you big jerk!" Katara called back with a playful smile.

Just as soon as he started to swim for shore, a familiar black shape appeared below him in the water. Katara called out a warning and this time Aang heard her. The black shape rose out of the water and Aang found himself standing on one of the coils of the sea serpent. The creature lunged at him, but the nimble airbender jumped out of the way and grabbed one of the monster's whiskers. The Unagi shook its head and Aang along with it in a wild rodeo ride. When Aang was finally lost his grip, he went flying toward the shore, skipping across the surface like a stone. He was close enough to the beach that Katara could pull his uninjured, but unconscious body to safety. But not before she too got an uncomfortably close look at the Unagi's head-sized teeth. The monster sea snake blasted the coastline with jets of water in frustration before returning to the depths.

"Don't ride the Unagi," Aang coughed, "Not fun…"

Just then, Katara spied a large Imperial warship approaching the bay. "Zuko!"

In the dojo, Sokka was doing surprisingly well. Suki couldn't help but be impressed with the real skill displayed. Still, he made plenty of mistakes. "You're not going to get it in one day. Even I'm not that good."

"I think I got this one," Sokka said as he tried a particularly difficult move. Instead of it ending with a graceful flourish, however, he ended up chucking his steel fan at a tree outside.

"It's not about power," Suki instructed, moving to demonstrate the lesson. "We use our opponent's force against them." She attempted to demonstrate by knocking Sokka to the ground again, but he turned the quick movement against her and she tripped. Quickly Suki picked herself up, blushing a little through her face paint. "I only fell to make you feel batter!"

"I got you!" Sokka pointed triumphantly, "Admit it, I got you!"

"Okay…" Suki conceded, putting Sokka's extended finger in a joint lock, "Beginner's luck."

Suddenly the mayor's head popped in. "Firebenders have landed on our shores," he said frantically. "Girls, come quickly."

"I'm not a…" Sokka began to protest as Suki left him behind. "Aw, forget it."

"Reports indicate that the Avatar is in this village," a firebender riding a massive komodo rhino told Zuko, also on one of the imposing beasts.

"This village was given leniency due to its lack of strategic or economic value," Zuko announced as much to the villagers cowering in their homes as his own men. "However, Kyoshi Island has been a breeding and training ground for dissidents and has sheltered the Avatar. Resistance against the Empire will not be tolerated! Burn the village to the ground!"

Most of the firebenders proceeded to do just that, whipping out the houses and stores one by one. A few of Zuko's men stayed behind. One spoke to their leader. "What are we to do with the Avatar?"

"Take him alive if you can. But don't hesitate to kill him if the need arises."

"Yes, your Excellency."

The firebenders caused serious damage to the town until the Kyoshi Warriors ambushed them. The warriors were exceptionally skilled and could almost match Zuko's elite guard blow for blow. Suki made the mistake of challenging Zuko, who easily brushed her off. Even when Sokka and two other Kyoshi Warriors came to her aid, Zuko proved more than a match for them. Zuko continued to walk through the Kyoshi Warriors foolish enough to challenge him until Aang appeared before him. Zuko easily kicked Aang's staff away, but again, he could not land a single hit on the nimble airbender. When Aang happened upon a pair of steel fans discarded during the battle. He used them to hit Zuko with an unavoidable blast of air that sent him into some of the smoldering debris left in his men's wake.

Aang retrieved his staff and found Katara, who was helping villagers take shelter in buildings that weren't collapsing and on fire. "Look at what I brought to this place," he said.

"It's not your fault."

"Yes it is! These people got their town destroyed because of me."

"Than let's get out of here. Zuko will have to leave to follow us."

Aang's head sank as he realized it was their only option. "I'll call Appa…"

Behind some buildings, Sokka and Suki were talking away from the battle. "There's no time to say goodbye," Suki said, out of breath.

"How about 'I'm sorry'?" Sokka asked.

"For what?"

"I treated you like a girl when I should have treated you like a warrior."

"I am a warrior," Suki said before leaning in and kissing Sokka on the cheek, "But I'm a girl too." Sokka was stunned silent until Suki pushed him toward Appa, who had just landed behind. "Go! We'll hold them off!"

As they made their escape, Aang made a point of flying over the town so everyone would see them. "Excellency!" one of the firebenders called, "The Avatar is escaping!"

"Let him," Zuko order calmly, "He'll only lead us to more of his allies. Arrest everyone! No one else escapes Kyoshi!"

"And if they resist?" one of the soldiers asked.

"You know what to do."

"As you wish, Fire Lord Zuko!"

The Kyoshi Warriors, having heard that, started herding the panicking villagers to the other side of the island where they had a small fleet of fishing boats they could use to escape. Aang, Katara, and, Sokka noticed that Zuko wasn't following as well.

"What do we do n-" Sokka started. He was cut off by Aang jumping into the sea.

When he reappeared, Aang was standing on the Unagi's back with a firm grip on both of its antennae. He pulled hard on the antennae like the reins on Appa. The beast loosed a blast of water, but more diffused than before. If fell on the village like rain, putting out the fire and soaking the Fire Empire troops. When all the fires were out, Aang directed the Unagi toward Zuko's ship and leapt off it and on to Appa. The Unagi turned its ire onto the ship as it was the closest thing it could reach and attack.

"Perfect…" Zuko groaned angrily, "Back to the ship! Don't let that thing damage it!"

All the Imperial troops rushed back to the ships, giving the villagers the time they needed to evacuate. With the fires out, they even had the time to gather a handful or two of personal belongings before they made their way to the boats. Just before he boarded, the mayor looked back at the sky bison shrinking into the distance. "Thank you, Avatar."

"I know, I know," Aang said as he climbed into the saddle, "That was stupid and dangerous."

"You're right," Katara smiled, "It was." She pulled him into a sudden hug as the party flew off into the sunset.

* * *

Much better, but not good. This didn't really advance the plot or give any information we didn't already have. I'll take it though. It doesn't feel as rushed to me, but that's not my place to say.


	6. Alive in Spirit pt 1

Due to me somehow losing a day somewhere and sudden and kind of random computer problems, once again, I'm starting with only hours to spare! I'll live though. I have the basic premise of this chapter already worked out in my head. In other good news, this chapter deviates from cannon like I should have done last chapter. So let's get to it;

* * *

After their escape from Kyoshi Island, Aang and company continued north. Due to the late hour of Zuko's attack, they had to make camp as soon as they found land to camp on. Luckily, they found a forest that reached the cliff face overlooking the South Sea. They were far enough from civilization to feel relatively secure and had plenty of woods to hide in should they be spotted by a passing Imperial patrol. Fortunately, no such patrol came.

It wasn't until that morning that the party discovered the bad news. They had received some supplies from the people of Kyoshi but they were still under stocked. Food could be foraged for easily enough and with Katara's waterbending, water was no issue. It was things like medical supplies and tools that they were lacking.

"Why not just head to the nearest town and buy all that stuff?" Aang asked without a second thought. "After all, we have more than enough money for it."

"It's not that simple," Sokka corrected, "Any town we go to will be under the control of the Empire."

"There must be some place we can go…"

"Unfortunately, Sokka's right," Katara said solemnly, "The only place left that isn't directly controlled by the Fire Empire is the Northern Water Tribe. The Earth Kingdom is pretty much gone now."

"But just because there's no place on a map called the Earth Kingdom doesn't mean the Earth Kingdom is gone," Aang said hopefully. "Besides, I bet most of the Fire Empire troops around here haven't even heard about me yet."

"Ever the optimist," Sokka sighed dismissively, shaking his head lightly.

"Well…" Katara started, unsure herself, "…I guess we really don't have any other choice but to try."

"It's settled then!" Aang said happily as he jumped onto Appa's head.

The Water Tribe siblings were much less enthusiastic, but climbed into the sky bison's saddle anyway. Appa took off in a general northward direction as his passengers scanned for a place to resupply. It didn't take too long to find a suitable town. At Sokka's insistence, they landed well outside of town and walked in so as not to arouse suspicion as to who they were.

The town was fair-sized and clean. The simple wooden houses and shops were all only a story tall and the road was simply well traveled dirt. The only standout building was a three story town hall made of brick and mortar and with the insignia of the Fire Empire emblazoned upon it. There were people of all types crisscrossing the streets. Some wore greens and browns, the traditional dress of Earth Kingdom, while other wore various shades of red. The town seemed simple and quiet.

As Aang and his friends entered the town, they immediately turned everyone's heads. It didn't take Sokka long to assume the worst. "They knew we were coming," he whispered worriedly, "It's a trap. I knew we shouldn't have come here!"

"Did it ever occur to you that these villagers might find our clothes odd?" Katara whispered back impatiently. Aang didn't pipe up since he was too busy waving to every stranger and passerby.

The three moved to one of the shops and returned the keeper's greeting. He was older, forties about, with a tired face just starting to wrinkle. He had short black hair with streaks of grey and wore wimple brown clothes. "Hello. We're travelers and we need some supplies for our journey."

"Travelers, you say?" the shopkeeper repeated, "Haven't seen may travelers pass by our little town in many years. Aren't you a bit young to be running about on your own?"

"We can take care of ourselves," Sokka assured confidently. "So are we going to do business or what?"

The shopkeeper sighed and let the young "travelers" inside. They started with their business and were just about to conclude when a group of three rather large men barged in. They wore bright green and their shirts bore the insignia of the Earth Kingdom emblazoned in bright gold.

"You'll get yourself killed wearing clothes like that, Han," the shopkeeper said simply to one of the men before turning away from him and back to Sokka, who had been doing most of the talking during their transaction.

"At least we have some national pride, Ginn Tsu," the man responded. The man, Han, was taller than the other two and his arms were covered in scars from many different blades and a shaved head. His brown eyes had a wild quality to them.

"You can't have pride for a nation that doesn't exist anymore," the shopkeeper Ginn Tsu returned tiredly. "The Earth Kingdom is gone and no amount of disorganized attacks from guys like us is going to change that."

"So you still haven't changed your mind?"

"Nothing you say will ever change my mind."

"No wonder the Empire could never find 'the Rabbit'," Han said scornfully as he turned to leave, "He's already dead."

Once the men left, Ginn Tsu sighed. "I'm sorry about that. Don't mind them."

"Who were they?" Katara asked curiously.

"Just some guys I knew back in my days in the army."

"You're a soldier?" Aang asked.

"Not for a long time now. That'll be three gold and twenty silver pieces."

Sokka handed over the cash eyeing the older man carefully. "So what did that guy mean by 'the Rabbit it dead'?"

"That's what they used to call me back in my army days," Ginn Tsu explained. "They called me the Rabbit because the Fire Empire troops could never catch me." He smiled for a moment as he reminisced about the glory days. Then he sighed, "But like I said, that was a long time ago."

"Sounded to me like they wanted to change that," Sokka said, motioning toward the door.

"They've been trying to get me to join their rebel group for months. Those stubborn fools won't take no for an answer."

"Why do you turn them down?" Katara asked, "If you don't mind saying, that is."

"Well, because the war's already lost," Ginn Tsu said sadly. "I don't see the point in spilling any more blood for a country that doesn't exist."

"But there's more to the Earth Kingdom than a name on a map," Sokka said, motioning Aang to continue.

He spoke up when he caught on to Sokka's single. "He's right. Even if the Fire Empire has taken your land, they can't take away your identity."

"I'd like to believe that son," Ginn Tsu sighed, "I really would. But just hearing those words isn't enough to make it so. Even coming from the Avatar." Aang, Sokka, and Katara reeled in surprise at those lest few words. "It's not that hard to figure out with those tattoos," Ginn Tsu smiled kindly. "I don't know if there's anything even you can do in your 'travels', Avatar, but I wish you the best of luck."

They left Ginn Tsu's shop and quickly made their way out of town. They noticed a few Imperial troops around town as they left, but they weren't spotted.

"At least we got the supplies we needed," Aang said half-heartedly, "But I wish there was something we could do for Ginn Tsu and his town."

"Maybe there is…" Sokka said almost to himself as he rubbed his chin in thought.

"This isn't going to be another one of your crazy ideas, is it?" Katara asked skeptically.

"No!" Sokka shot back defensively, "This is gonna be one of my _brilliant_ ideas."

"Great!" Aang smiled.

Katara didn't seem nearly as enthusiastic, "Yeah… Great."

* * *

(God, I suck with names.) Done and on time! This turned out okay and it wasn't even that hard to write. Next chapter should have more action in it, so bear with me.


	7. Alive in Spirit pt 2

I can't believe I've done this to myself again. That's right, another last minute update. When I get back around to this one, it may get reorganized but that's a long way off.

* * *

"That's your 'brilliant idea'?!" Katara growled in a hushed voice. It was the middle of the night and the three children were sneaking around town. Sokka was in the lead with an armful of paper, tacking pages onto the walls of the various buildings they passed.

"I think it's clever," Aang said, trying to be as optimistic as possible.

"Don't encourage him!" she sneered as loudly as she dared.

"How come you're only ever a pessimist when what we're doing is my idea?" Sokka complained, tacking up another flyer.

"Because you can't even draw a circle!" Katara pointed as the newest page added to one of the shops. It had a crudely drawn circle with an equally messy square inside of it; the symbol of the Earth Kingdom. Around the symbol of the Earth Kingdom were words scribbled down hurriedly. "The Earth Kingdom is more than just a name on a map," it said. A few other posters had other phrases like "The Avatar has returned!" and "The Empire can't take your identity". "This isn't going to help anybody!" Katara said perhaps a little louder than she should have. "What if you get the townspeople in trouble?"

Before Sokka could answer, a muscular arm shot out from the window of the building they were next to and pulled him inside. Just as Aang and Katara were about to panic, another arm grabbed them and pulled them inside as well. Once their eyes adjusted to the candlelight, the saw the owner of the arms; Ginn Tsu. "Have you kids lost your minds?" he asked crossly.

"It was Sokka's idea," Aang supplied right away, pointing to him.

"Thanks for backing me up, Aang."

"I'm not angry, I'm worried," Ginn Tsu clarified.

"Like I said yesterday, we can take care of ourselves," Sokka said.

"I'm not worried about you. You're resourceful, clever kids. What I'm worried about is how the other villagers will react."

"You don't think it will inspire them?" Katara asked.

"I know it _will_. That's what I'm afraid of." Ginn Tsu sighed and sat down in a chair that happened to be nearby. "We've been very lucky in this town. There's been almost no bloodshed here. If the people see someone is still resisting, the Imperial garrison here will put them down."

"So you just want to give up?" Aang asked solemnly. Despite his perhaps unfavorable opinion of Sokka's methods, he still had a kind of conviction in his eyes that shouldn't have been able to live in such young eyes. It was hard to believe such a young kid could be the Avatar, the savior of the world. But you wouldn't be able to guess is age with that expression.

"Why are you so determined?" Ginn Tsu asked. He didn't sound quite as hopeless as before (though he also didn't seem too inclined to start leading any armies either). He seemed genuinely curious about the answer. "The war has been over for two years. Why do you think you can change anything now?"

"Because I can't just pass by when I see a wrong that needs to be righted," Aang said with determination beyond his years in his voice. "I don't care if it's hopeless. I'll just have to _make_ hope!"

"I can't believe I'm actually considering this…"

"Considering what?" Sokka asked.

"Do you think you can really make a difference?" Ginn Tsu asked Aang specifically. He nodded without a second thought. "Then I'm with you. I'll try to make a little hope for the Earth Kingdom too." Ginn Tsu paused for a moment realizing that was the first time in a long time that he had acknowledged the Earth Kingdom in a long time. "So what's your overall plan?"

Sokka was quick to pipe up. "I know we can't hope to take on the Empire directly," Sokka started, "so we have to start small in towns like this. If we get enough towns to rebel, we can take the Earth Kingdom back bit by bit."

"What's to stop the Empire from crushing the towns that rise up?"

"Unfortunately, nothing at first. Aang won't be ready to take on the Empire until he masters water, earth, and firebending. We'll have to use guerilla tactics until either the resistance movement gets big enough to fight back or Aang finishes his training."

"Do you realize the scope of what you're suggesting?"

"That's why we need everyone can get to help," Sokka finished.

"You've got guts, at least, kid," Ginn Tsu said with a smile. "Your plan is absolutely crazy, but it might just be our only shot."

"Well, there's nothing left for us to do tonight," Aang yawned and stretched. "We'd better head back to camp. Tomorrow is going to be a busy day."

"There's no need for that," Ginn Tsu said with a smile, "I've got plenty of room."

"We don't mean to impose," Katara said.

"Not at all. This house it too big for just me."

The next day, they were awoken early in the morning by sudden shouting. Ginn Tsu was the first out the door, followed closely by Aang, Katara, and Sokka. A crowd had gathered outside the town center shouting angrily at the soldiers guarding it.

"We treat this town with benevolence and mercy and this is how you repay us?!" the leader among the soldiers demanded. Suddenly a rock sailed through the air and hit the soldier right in the face. He was lucky the metal mask absorbed most of the impact.

"You don't know the meaning of the word 'mercy'!" a child in the crowd, possibly the owner of the offending rock cried.

"You'd better hope that rock was thrown or it's off to the camps for you!" one of the soldiers warned.

"Let's show them what they think of their labor camps!" another member of the crowd shouted. With a cheer, a barrage of small stones pelted the Imperial troops. Finally one of the firebenders had enough and threw a jet of flame at the protestors. They cringed in fear until a rock wall was summoned to protect them. "What?!" The rock wall disappeared into the ground to show the crowd parting. A man walked through the lane calmly; Ginn Tsu. "He's an earthbender! Get him!" The firebenders made to surround him, but they were ambushed. Sokka appeared from the crowd and knocked one of them out cold with his club. Katara grabbed and flung another with her waterbending. Sure, she was aiming for four of them, but she wasn't going to look a gift ostrich-horse in the mouth. Lastly, Aang leapt over the crowd from the back, landing next to Ginn Tsu and blowing the rest of the handful of firebenders with ease.

"It's the Avatar!" one of the townsfolk in the crowd gasped.

"Crush them!" the firebender leader yelled as he picked himself up, "Put these ungrateful cretonnes down!" The firebenders made to strike, but some of the people in the front row of the crowd suddenly dropped into earthbending stances and launched small boulders at them. Only the fastest of the firebenders avoided the harsh attack.

The crowd went into a frenzy, charging the soldiers. Despite the fact that the citizens were unarmed and largely untrained, it didn't take long before they were overrun and forced to flee. The few who tried to fight back were countered by the benders in the group. One particularly tenacious firebender refused to give up. After getting thrown around by the crowd for a while, a well-placed rock pillar to the chest sent him flying into the Fire Empire crest on the town hall. Aang was worried the crowd was about to go too far, but fortunately, that last soldier decided he had had enough and hobbled off.

Ginn Tsu moved to the front of the crowd and raised his fist triumphantly. "From this day forward, I pledge my earthbending to the true Earth King! Long live the Earth Kingdom!" As the crowd cheered and celebrated their newly liberated town. Ginn Tsu moved quietly to Aang and company, who were off to the side. "Thank you, Avatar. Thanks to you, we have hope again."

"It'll take a lot more than hope to save the Earth Kingdom," Aang said with a confident smile, "But it's a great place to start!"

"Good luck, travelers," Ginn Tsu called as they left town. With pride, he looked up at the Fire Empire insignia and smiled at the crack in it.

"We can do it!" Aang said happily from Appa's head. "We can still restore balance and save the world.

"It's going to be really difficult," Sokka warned.

"But as long as we don't lose the hope we've built, we have a chance," Katara added, sharing Aang's optimistic attitude. The party continued north, confident in their mission. Flying among the clouds, they didn't notice the Fire Empire battalion heading towards Ginn Tsu's town.

* * *

That worked as intended. I'm a little worried the pacing is off a bit, but that's what I got. This is finally growing into its own story and I like that. I think it may go under some heavy revisions when I get back around to it after I finish it, but that has yet to be seen. After all, I still haven't finished any of my stories yet! But you don't want to hear any of my silly lamentations, do you?


	8. City in Ruins pt 1

This time it was Christmas that ate up my week. I hadn't even started planning this until late last night. That said though, I think I might have a good chapter coming along. This also might get spit up for story purposes. Yet to be seen.

* * *

As Appa continued north, Aang steered him just a bit off course. He was worried about the city of Omashu, where his friend Bumi lived a hundred years ago. Katara and Sokka had no knowledge of the city, so they unfortunately couldn't tell their friend anything. Still, despite everything they had encountered, Aang was still optimistic. Omashu was in the middle of a mountain and well defended. There was a chance that it could still be a hold out after all this time.

"My friend Bumi and I used to have so much fun together," Aang reminisced as they continued toward the city. "We'd ride the mail delivery system like a giant super-slide. He always used to tell me that I had to 'open my brain to the possibilities'." They rose up over a mountain to see a vastly changed Omashu. "Not again…"

At least the city was still there. Mostly… The city was under siege, catapults, trebuchet, and other siege equipment pummeled the city from a mountain away. The city was made by earthbenders out of stone, so the Imperial projectiles couldn't set the city ablaze. And the city sent a few sporadic volleys of rock back at the Imperial troops outside meaning the city was, without a doubt, still free. The good news ended there. The constant pummeling the city was incurring had turned most of the buildings to smoldering wrecks. Aang brought Appa in for a landing well away from the soldiers. He did so just in time as a flight of eight bi-planes in two v-formations flew toward the city. They watched from under a rocky outcropping as the bi-planes bombed the city and disappeared into the horizon.

"I can't believe there are still some Earth Kingdom cities resisting the Empire…" Sokka said, not as depressed as Aang about the staggering violence. "We were always told that there was nothing left of the Earth Kingdom. I guess it was just propaganda…"

"But the city is in ruins," Katara noted, "Is there even anyone left?"

"Why would they be attacking the city if it was empty?"

"I know a way to find out," Aang said. He turned to Appa and told the sky bison to stay out of sight. Afterword he waved his friends along and headed down the mountain. It took quite a while, but eventually, they reached the side of the mountain Omashu sat atop. On the side was a strange pipe cut into the mountain. Aang was able to pull the cover off, releasing a torrent of thick, foul-smelling green liquid.

"Aang! The sewers?!" Katara complained.

"It's the only way into the city with the bridge destroyed," Aang explained apologetically.

"Come on, Katara," Sokka said dismissively, "It's just a little sewer water. Toughen up a little."

Sokka's mind quickly changed as they entered the pipeline. Aang and Katara could keep themselves relatively dry with the help of their bending. Sokka on the other hand had to not only deal with the waist deep sludge, but also the waves that his companions created as their bending displaced it. He couldn't even protest as the waves made it past his head, covering him at some points.

They finally made it after another long trek and were hard-pressed to say it was worth it. The landscape looked like ruins at best and apocalyptic at worst. The near constant crack of explosions was grating and there was no one to be seen. They wondered a bit looking for someone in the city to explain the situation. The closer they got to the city wall, the more they had to be aware of the shelling. Finally they noticed some soldiers taking shelter in some wrecked shops. The kids ran to them, happy to see the city really was more than just target practice.

"What do you children think you're doing?!" one of the soldiers demanded as another wave of flaming boulders were flung at the city. Aang used his airbending to blast the projectiles back in the direction they came. It was impossible to tell if he had hit anything from where they were, but either way that was a half dozen flaming rocks not doing further damage to the weary city. "Who on earth-?"

"This is the Avatar," Katara explained, "We're here to help you."

"We need to see your leader right away!" Sokka added energetically.

"Oh is that so?" an odd voice asked. A strange man stepped out of the shadows. He had surprisingly clean green robes. He had a hunched back, odd eyes and a wrinkled face. As the strange man approached, all the soldiers he passed bowed to him. "What makes you think you have the right to see the King of Omashu?"

"Umm… I'm the Avatar?"

"Never heard of you!" the strange king scoffed. He suddenly was staring Sokka in the face just a few inches away. "You don't look like much, Mr. Avatar…"

"Not me, him," Sokka pointed at his friend. The crazy king seemed to slide as if on ice so he was invading Aang's personal space instead of Sokka's.

"Oh. You're much more impressive."

"Hey!"

"But you still don't look like much," the king dismissed, "How could you help to save the city?"

"We can help you to fight off the Imperial troops attacking your city," Katara explained. "If we can get the Empire to stop bombing the city, your citizens will be safe."

"My citizens are already safe!" the king returned as if he were a child comparing toys to a peer. "They're in the underground catacombs under the city. Those silly little rocks they send at us don't even tickle." The group heard the approaching engine of the bi-plane bombers approaching from the south. "Those flying machines on the other hand _do_ tickle a little…"

"I can handle them," Aang said, opening his glider and taking to the sky. As he approached one of the aircraft, the pilot started firebending at him. With the crosswind and Aang's impressive agility, he was able to dodge the flame. The Avatar responded with an air bullet to the aircraft's fuselage. The wooden construct shattered like glass, forcing the two crew members to bail out into the cold mountain air.

The other bombers bugged out and escaped, leaving Aang to rescue the two crewmembers of the aircraft he downed. Apparently, they had no means of escape and had only jumped from their wreck in panic as it tumbled out of control. Aang easily caught one, though it made his flying unstable. The other plummeted and Aang raced through his options in his mind. Right before he was about to decide on something crazy, he saw the king on the ground start to earthbend. He lost his robe and hunchback posture and summoned a column of stone to rise beneath him. The platform lifted him skyward until he caught the other Fire Empire pilot in a bear hug. "You're going to be a good prisoner and behave, right?" the king asked in an almost welcoming manner. The pilot nodded. "Good. I'd hate to have to drop you the rest of the way to the ground. On your head."

Both pilots landed safely on terra firma safely. Sokka seemed the most pleased, though the soldiers were glad to see the first Imperial bomber downed since they appeared in Omashu's skies. "You see that? That's what the Avatar can do!"

"Please your majesty," Katara asked politely, "We can help. We're trying to start a resistance. We can beat the Empire and restore the Earth Kingdom."

"Well, we are experienced at resisting Empires," the king said.

"Then you'll allow us to help you?" Aang asked hopefully.

"Why not? Put 'er there, Avatar!" The king extended a hand… to Sokka.

"Um… he's the Avatar," Sokka pointed to his friend, "Remember?"

"Right. I knew that."

He may be odd, but he was their new ally; the King of Omashu. Well, beggars can't be choosers…

* * *

I went back and forth on the structure of this chapter, but I think I may have an idea about how to next proceed. Playing around with structure may be fun, but deadlines aren't. Also, have a great 2013! (Sarcasm:) We sure showed those silly Mayans, didn't we?


	9. City in Ruins pt 2

Finished _I am Darkness_. Now that I have a finished story I can focus on my others more intensively. It's taken quite a long time to get back to _Off Center_, but fortunately I know what I'm going to do with it. This might just set the pace for the next sixth of the story. The lucky thing for me is that this is one of those stories that mostly writes itself. We'll see.

* * *

"All right, troops! We must ready ourselves for battle. Today we fight to defend our home and our people. If you all proceed with courage, than victory shall be ours!" The King of Omashu's speech was certainly rousing. Unfortunately, he was giving it to boulders. All of his soldiers were two rooms away.

"Are we sure this is a good idea?" Katara asked as she peeked in on the king ranting to rocks and spears.

"We don't really have much of a choice," Aang answered quickly. After all the weirdness, even Sokka needed convincing. "And besides, I trust him."

"Okay," Sokka decided carefully. "At the very least, there are quite a lot of soldiers left in the city. I talked to some of them a minute ago. Once the Empire started taking over the area the king destroyed the bridge. Since the Empire didn't have a way to get into the city they started using it for target practice."

"That's comforting."

"The good news is that the underground catacombs have held out. They've been pelted for almost two years now." That was a depressing notion. At the time the three children were _in_ those underground catacombs. They were dim and dusty. There were no cracks or structural faults, but seeing as the place was made of stone and there was a ready supply of earthbenders, that wasn't a surprise. Some of the lights were strange glowing crystals, but many were dimly flickering torches. It gave the place a macabre gloom. The place was far from suffocating, but it did have the feel of standing still. Like the din of the shelling would never end.

"Well, we should try to stop the Empire from bombing the city. They can't invade, so without those catapults, the city is safe," Katara suggested. "Maybe we could cause a rockslide that knocks the weapons off the mountain."

"But that won't solve the real problem," Sokka countered. "What we really need to do is to hand the Fire Empire a _real_ defeat! Just like we did at that village!"

"That was a totally different situation. There are so many more soldiers this time. And they have all those weapons. A direct attack would just end up hurting us."

"I think we can pull it off." Sokka paused in thought for a minute, "But I guess it's up to you, Aang. What do you think we should do?"

Aang wasn't comfortable being team captain on a sports team. Now he had to decide the fate of an army. He was mulling both plans over in his head along with a few of his own ideas when he (and Katara and Sokka for that matter) were startled by the sudden appearance of the King. Somehow, the hunchback had seemingly teleported next to Aang without a sound. "Why don't you do both?" the King asked lightly.

"You can't sneak attack _and_ do a direct charge at the same time," Sokka groaned, rolling his eyes at the crazy king.

"I don't see why not," the King returned, "It seems perfectly reasonable to me."

Sokka and Katara were just about to lose hope in convincing the loon to be reasonable when Aang's face brightened. "Actually, that gives me an idea."

They waited until after dark. Aang, Sokka, and Katara had snuck out again through the sewers (much to Sokka's chagrin). It was easy to get around the Imperial forces at night. They didn't seem to be paying much attention to what was going on around them. Omashu, in all the time that the Empire had been besieging it, had never counterattacked once. That was good news. They wouldn't be expecting a direct assault _or_ a sneak attack. And they certainly wouldn't be expecting what was about to happen. The children Aang and Katara snuck around to a rocky outcropping behind the Imperial weapon installations. The soldiers that were awake were completely oblivious to their presence. They certainly weren't on guard duty. As quietly as they could, they weakened a number of rock ledges hanging above and behind the camps set up on the uneven ground. This time, Katara's waterbending proved indispensable.

Meanwhile, Sokka snuck around to the ledge Appa had been hiding on. He was high enough to see his sister give a silent signal. A few minutes later, Aang waved too. The sun was still set when Sokka coaxed Appa slowly into the sky. It was amazing how quiet a ten ton flying bison could be when he needed to be. Once Appa was high enough above the mountain tops to be seen from the city, a wave of boulders flung toward the unaware soldiers.

As the boulders tilted in their ark, holes in one side of them that held spears pointed at the ground. They flew like javelins, battering the unaware soldiers even before the rocks smashed into their base. "I knew that pep talk would help," the crazy king mused before summoning a large rock bridge and opening the city's impressive stone gate in one motion. "Charge!"

Just as the Imperial troops were just about to ready to counter the frontal assault by the Omashu troops, they heard someone yell something above them. Appa, Sokka on his back, descended from their vantage point in the night sky and landed with enough force to dislodge one of the weakened rock formations. Before it came fully lose, Appa had time to send a gale of wind at another weakened ledge. That one came off with a snap, colliding with and dislodging a third. Aang, using his airbending, blasted a fourth loose. Katara tried to dislodge the fifth and final one, but while her waterbending was perfect for cutting through the rock, it couldn't do much to move it. As the boulder Aang sent fell away from his feet, he flipped onto Katara's and gave it the push it needed. As it started to fall, he scooped her up and airbended them both onto Appa.

The addition of Aang and his friends seemed superfluous at first. Almost a third of the Empire's heavy weapons were destroyed, their Komodo Rhinos were loose and running in a panic, and the soldiers themselves were caught totally unaware by the attack. Everything seemed perfect until the sun started to rise. The more the sun started to peek over the peeks, the more walls of flame beat back the earthbenders. Not even the Avatar could hold them back. The earthbenders retreated across the bridge. When the Imperials tried to steal across after them, the king used part of the bridge as a projectile. That was enough to stop all but one of the troops. A crazy firebender tried to jump the gap made by the missing part of the bridge. It wasn't an impossible jump, but being off by an inch was certain death. Fortunately for him, the king sent another piece of bridge at him, sending safely back to his lines (even if it was with some new bruises). The firebender roared angrily. "I'll get you, Avatar!"

As more bridge chunks were used in covering the Omashu forces' retreat, the light of the sun only served to illuminate the insignificance of their victory. They hadn't put that many enemy soldiers out of the fight, the Komodo Rhinos were back under control, and they may have gotten some a hundred and fifteen trebuchet, but that still left another almost three hundred to go. And all of that didn't do a thing to solve the biggest problem of all; the bombers.

"Well, that was a complete success!" the king announced, "Couldn't have gone better!" Sokka was just about to kill what little moral the Omashu troops had when Aang cut him off.

"So everyone got out of the city alright?"

"Yup! Just got the message from my elite guard," the king smiled, "They and all the citizens got out unnoticed just as planned."

"Wait… When did you decide this?" Katara asked, stumped.

"I thought the point was to make the city safe so the people could _stay_ here," her brother added.

"Well, the thing is, my subjects have this nasty habit of needing food," the king mused. "I was gonna ask them to kick the stuff cold-turkey, but I hear that's not good for your health."

"There's no point in waiting here and getting killed," Aang explained, "So we used the attack as a distraction so the people could get away."

"No point in those folks getting starved out for wrecked houses. I'll stay here and do whatever it takes to get rid of those barbarians." He snorted in a hearty laugh, "I just gotta open my brain to the possibilities!"

* * *

That will do. It's not perfect, but I'm not embarrassed by it. This is something I can be happy with until I come back around and revise it. Overall, this did what I intended to do and the story is taking shape. With any luck, this story should move along at a good clip.


	10. City in Ruins pt 3

I intended to work ahead, but guess what I didn't do?

Heavy: Not big surprise.

I blame s-CRY-ed… Anyway, I have had what this chapter will be planned out for as long as I've had this alteration of Omashu planned, so that's good at least. I hope I can make this work and pace this out right.

* * *

"Now that the citizens of the city are out of harm's way, we can focus on driving away the Empire," Sokka started as he, Katara, Aang, and King Bumi of Omashu sat around a table in the underground catacombs. As it turned out, the crazy king was Aang's friend Bumi. Bumi had always been a mad genius. Even after a hundred years, that hadn't changed.

"Not so fast there, fellow," Bumi spoke up, "Now that Omashu has proven itself a threat, the Empire's going to take of the kid gloves. And we're likely to see a lot more of those flying machines."

"So we've only made it worse?" Katara asked.

"Not necessarily. Now they'll be pummeling us instead of oppressing someone else."

"Maybe we should just leave Omashu?" Aang suggested.

"Well," Bumi sighed, almost sadly, "As much as I hate to admit it, Omashu is probably a lost cause by now. But I've spent every day of my life in this city, and I'm not going to give up on it just yet."

"I think we should be prepared for an attack on the city itself," Sokka warned. "Just because the Empire hasn't tried to get in the city yet, doesn't mean they won't try."

"Already have that taken care of. Placed guards on the city wall. Speaking of which, here comes one of us now." The group turned to see one of the earthbenders dash into the room out of breath. "Aren't you supposed to be on the wall?"

"I was, your majesty," the out of breath solder gasped, "But the enemy is invading."

"Oh, goodie! We have guests! I should go greet them."

Outside, a fierce battle had erupted. The shelling had continued, but was concentrated on the higher parts of the city. The wall remained completely untouched by the artillery. From the mountain next to the city, Imperial troops were throwing and launching lines to try to swing over the gap. The earthbenders and warriors were repelling the attacks as best they could, but the numbers and tenacity of the Imperial troops were making slow headway.

Aang and the others arrived as the first few soldiers had made it across the chasm and were scaling the wall. "I was wondering why they hadn't tried that yet," Bumi mused before throwing the climbers back to their lines with rock pillars summoned form the wall itself. With the added help of the powerful Bumi and Aang's airbending, the Imperial assault was easily repelled. That is, until the airships arrived.

The sky darkened as giant red airships hovered above the ruined city. After a few moments of breathless waiting, lines dropped down from the airships and people in special uniforms rode the lines down into the heart of the city. "Well, that's not good. I hadn't thought of that…" While Bumi was lamenting that and still fending the rejuvenated efforts of the Imperial garrison to get into the city, Sokka organized the near panicking troops.

"We have to prevent the guys that dropped from the airships from surrounding us!" he shouted over the sounds of battle. "Warriors and a few earthbenders, come with me! We'll cut them off in the city! The rest of you stay here and keep that army outside!"

"What should I do?" Katara asked her brother, not sure what her amateur waterbending could do.

"Stay here," he told her right away, "Your waterbending will be perfect for washing soldiers off the side of the wall."

"On it."

"I'm going to get Appa and see what I can do about those balloons up there," Aang said, opening his glider.

"What should I do, commander?" It was hard to tell if Bumi was being serious or not. Sokka found him _so_ much more tolerable now that he knew he wasn't out-of-his-mind crazy, but he was still… weird.

"Uh, I don't know. Whatever you want, I guess."

"Love this plan!" Bumi exclaimed as he knocked a few dozen soldiers off the wall of his city.

Sokka followed the soldiers headed into the city. At first, they were at a full run, ready to meet their foe with strength. But quickly they realized they had passed the point that the enemy troops dropped to. The city was eerily calm. Where would the soldiers who dropped in have gone? The ruined palace? There was no one there and nothing to loot. Sokka got his answer when he and the other warriors were ambushed from the shadows of the ruined buildings around them. They were already surrounded and it didn't take long for them to see these elite forces had them outmatched as well.

Aang, in the meantime, had already retrieved Appa and was attacking the airships to little avail. The ships were very well defended by firebenders and surprisingly durable. It didn't help that Appa had all he could handle to just avoid being deep fried and was twisting all over the sky. Finally, Aang got a good swipe at one of the airships with his airbending. It cut a long gash into one of the airships. It started to list, but it wasn't destroyed. The crew of the vessel went to work quickly to keep it from falling apart. The other airships quickly backed off, not wanting to incur similar damage. With the airships retreating, one possibly for good, Aang surveyed the battlefield from the sky. The situation on the wall was deteriorating. As one and two and three Imperials got onto the wall, more and more defenders had to fight them off rather than keep the wall clear. It wouldn't be long before the wall was overrun. But with Bumi and Katara there, they would be fine for some time yet. It was Sokka that was really in danger.

Many of the warriors who had been wounded or killed. Worse yet, they were surrounded. Aang dive bombed the soldiers and pushed them out of the way. With renewed vigor, the soldiers fought back to the base of the wall. Thanks to Aang's airbending, they were able to beat back the drop soldiers and give themselves the room they needed for everyone to escape. The defenders made their way back into the underground catacombs. Unfortunately, the Empire now could attack the entrance directly, and they wouldn't be safe for long.

"Bumi, I know how much this city means to you, but it's already lost," Aang said as Katara and Sokka tended to the wounded soldiers. "This city is lost, but the Earth Kingdom isn't. We need you."

Bumi sighed as before. "Yup. You're right, old friend. But restoring the Earth Kingdom isn't something I can do alone. You are our last hope for peace. It's your destiny to defeat the Phoenix King, Ozai. Only then can there be hope for balance to be restored to the world."

"That's why we're headed to the North Pole," Katara popped in with a smile, "I know Aang can save the world. And Sokka and I will do whatever it takes to help him."

The room seemed to brighten a little with her optimism. Bumi smiled, "You're lucky to have such good friends. You'll need them on the tough road ahead." Bumi gave a toothy grin as he created a way out big enough for Appa, "Until next time, I hope you stay safe and think like a mad genius!"

* * *

This actually ended up better than I feared. Not great, but passable. Haven't really been in the writing mindset, but we'll see how this holds up. Also s-CRY-ed and Bioshock have been distracting me. I'll blame it on that…


	11. Running

Started this late, but this isn't one of my better stories and I've been working on my other ones. Not much of an excuse, but it's what I've got. This should be worth the effort though. I have plans (sort of) for this so we'll see how they turn out.

* * *

Two days had passed since Aang and his friends left Omashu. It was still all a bit too hard for Aang to swallow. It hurt that Bumi had to leave the only home he ever knew. Still, what else could be done? At least he saved the citizens. The spirit of the city was in them, not in the ruined buildings they left. Just like the Earth Kingdom. Spirits, how was he ever going to get used to all this madness?

The group made camp. It was still a long, long way to the North Pole, and a lot of occupied Earth Kingdom to go through. The Empire was everywhere, though with two years of peace, they weren't exactly out in force. Yet.

Having been camping for some time and unable to resupply in Omashu, the group had to go out and forage. Thanks to Aang's already extensive traveling experience, he knew what plants were safe to eat and which were best left alone. He and Katara had found quite a bounty when they heard a strange noise coming from the direction of their camp. Katara quickly grew worried as Sokka had been fishing in the river there. The two of them rushed back almost into the waiting arms of a group of Fire Empire soldiers, had Sokka not pulled them out of the way. Unfortunately, Appa was a bit too big to hide.

"Now what do we do?" Sokka complained more than asked. "We can't leave Appa behind, but we can't take on that many soldiers!" Even with his voice hushed it was hard to believe none of the soldiers heard it.

"I think we can do it…" Aang whispered, much more quietly. He looked around. There were about twenty or so men in armor with spears. If the spears were any indication, there weren't any firebenders among them. "All we have to do is get to Appa and fly away. There's no way they can catch us after that."

"It seems a bit risky…" Katara warned. "Maybe we can find a way to distract-"

"I found you!" an angry voice yelled. They turned around to see a firebender rearing up to attack them. The three jumped out of the way, but now all the soldiers in camp knew they were there. The soldiers turned their attention from the snarling Appa to the Avatar and his friends that just landed in front of them.

The firebender leapt at Aang, the attack blown away with a blast of air from Aang's glider. The firebender spun in the air to land upright and charged launching fireballs. Aang deflected the attacks than blew the firebender into a tree.

Sokka was having a bit of trouble with a group of soldiers that surrounded him. He was blocking their attacks with his club just fine, but there were too many to counterattack. Just as the soldiers were closing in he heard Appa roar distinctly in his direction. Sokka looked over at Appa, who was lifting his large, paddle-like tail. Sokka knew what that meant and duked. Appa dropped his tail and a gale blasted away the solders over Sokka. "Thanks, big guy," Sokka flashed the thumbs up before running to pick up what he could from camp.

Katara was holding off a few soldiers herself. She had the advantage of the nearby to draw water from. She kept them at bay with waves of water drawn from the river. When she saw Sokka loading Appa's saddle, she drew up as much water as she could and dumping it on the approaching soldiers. Aang blasted away a few other soldiers away and leapt onto Appa's head. With a flip of the reins and a "Yip yip!" they were off. They didn't stay to see the soldiers get ambushed a few minutes later by Earth Kingdom guerrillas.

"That was a bit too close!" Katara breathed, relaxing into the saddle.

"It looks like we didn't lose anything from camp," Sokka reported as he looked through the bags and stores on the saddle around him. "We were lucky. But we might not be next time. We need to do something about the Empire, or we'll never be able to make camp again!"

"But we can't just keep flying all the way to the North Pole," Aang reported from his perch on Appa's head, "Appa needs rest and we all need to eat."

"You're right," Sokka sighed. "And we don't really blend in as former Earth Kingdom _or_ Fire Empire citizens, so it's not like we can go town hopping."

"Maybe we can find people who would be willing to help us," Katara suggested, "Like Ginn Tsu."

"We can't rely on finding a Ginn Tsu in every town we wander into. It takes just one mistake for us to get captured and then it's all over!" Sokka warned

"You're such a pessimist!" Katara complained.

"_You're_ such an optimist!" he countered.

"You make that sound like it's a bad thing!"

"That's because it is!"

"Guys, quit it!" Aang barked from the reins. "Look, no matter what we decided, we're going to have to find a place to land." Aang motioned to the sun, it had already set. Only the purple glow of dusk remained and it was fading fast. "We're just going to have to risk it for tonight. We'll only get out what we need and decide what we should do in the morning." The Water Tribe siblings agreed.

Appa touched down in a little secluded hollow. The area looked devoid of human interaction. Aside from lifting Aang's spirits to see such an untouched location, it also meant that Imperial troops were unlikely to wander by. Instead of making a full camp, unloading Appa's saddle and all the other things usually associated with preparation for the night's rest, the group just unloaded the sleeping bags, and took off Appa's saddle. It was amazing how heavy it was when they didn't take time to remove all their effects from it. In any event, they had had a fast day, so Sokka and Katara decided to turn in early.

Aang sat awake, staring into the little campfire he managed to scratch together. "This is pretty crazy, huh buddy," he said sadly to Appa. The Sky Bison inched over and nuzzled Aang with his big wet nose. Aang couldn't help but smile. "Heheh, you always know what to say."

Katara rustled in her sleeping bag and looked over at her friend. "Aang? Are you still awake?"

"Sorry," he said as he poked the humble flame. "I didn't mean to wake you…"

She sat up and rubbed the sleep from her eyes, "It's okay. Is something on your mind?" She immediately looked away after asking, "Sorry, stupid question."

"No, I…" Aang couldn't really put into words what he was feeling. The world had turned upside down as far as he was concerned. "Can I really do anything? Everything is so messed up and I feel too powerless to fix it…"

"I have faith in you, Aang. I know you can set things right."

"So the monks told me. But I never asked to be the Avatar. I never wanted to be."

"I said I had faith in _you_, Aang," Katara smiled. "Sure you're the Avatar, but you're also brave, strong, smart, talented, kind, and the most amazing bender I've ever seen."

"That's only because I'm the Avatar…" Aang countered sadly.

"I don't think that's true. I bet even if you were just an ordinary airbender, you would still be just as amazing." Aang smiled at the compliment. It didn't hurt that it had come from his crush. "The world needs the Avatar, but the world also needs _you_ Aang."

Aang was about to thank her when suddenly a dozen figures clad all in black brandishing swords and spears appeared and surrounded the group. "Great, what now?"

* * *

Not perfect, but more than passable. This kind of shaped up as I made it, but it's fitting in with what I'm going for. This might just be a turning point and reenergize this story a bit for me. We'll see how the next one goes.


	12. The FEU pt 1

Starting at the last minute. And in a different state no less. Ah, well. I have a rather vague idea of what this is going to be, so I should be able to get it done. Time to find out.

* * *

For once it might not have been so bad that they had been ambushed and surrounded by people pointing weapons at them. Even in the darkness and against the dark clothes, Aang could make out the Earth Kingdom insignia on their shirts. At least they weren't Imperials. Perhaps they could talk their way out of this.

Katara was too rightfully panicked by the sword leveled at her nose to be thinking so clearly. It took several minutes of awkward and tense staring before one of the nebulous warriors spoke up. "Who are you?" a young, powerful sounding voice finally asked.

"Uhhh… The Avatar?" Aang responded dumbly.

"Lies," the voice baked back.

"But I-" Aang started before the voice cut him off again.

"Why are you here," the voice continued. Not following the rapid change of topic in such a confusing situation, Aang just stared into the occasionally glittering darkness, the cold steel of the weapons making the night seem even more mysterious. "I asked you a question!" the voice that Aang was just now recognizing as something close to feminine. It caused him to jump, and in turn the spears and swords to close in on him.

"Uhh, what?" Aang asked now much closer to the fear induced stupor that Katara was in.

"I asked you why you were here! Answer!" the voice ordered. Before the voice was authoritative. Now it was authoritative and angry.

"We're j-just passing through…" Katara finally got out, trying to back away from the sword in her face. And while that wasn't working out very well, the weapons all lifted when she finally spoke.

With the imminent threat literally lifted (for now) Aang found his voice again, "Listen, I really am the Avatar. We're heading to the North Pole so I can learn waterbending and set all of this insanity with the Fire Empire right."

The owner of the voice stepped forward, "If you're really the Avatar, than where have you been the last hundred and twenty years?" She was about Katara's age, and clearly very muscular even under her leather armor. In spite of that, her face was fair. Her short black hair framed it and drew you into her sharp green eyes.

"I… was kind of locked in an iceberg for over a hundred years…" Aang answered sheepishly.

The rustling of the spears and swords moving back into place woke up the still sleeping Sokka, who looked around groggily. "Huh? Wha? Did we get captured by the empire again? Can you get this one, Aang? I'm sure you can handle whatever it is." With that Sokka flopped back down and went back to sleep. Or had he woken up at all?

"Y-your friend has quite a lot of faith in you…" the girl noted. Aang just shrugged as the weapons lifted again. "So, Avatar, huh?"

Dawn was about to break when they finally awoke Sokka fully. It took quite a lot of explanation for him to relax with all the heavily armed people surrounding him. During that explanation, they finally learned the strong-looking girl's name; Biyu. She was the second in command of the largest Earth Kingdom resistance group, the Free Earth Union. Most of the Earth Kingdom Military joined it a few months after Ba Sing Se, the capital of the Earth Kingdom was taken. The group had rallied behind the young son of a former Earth Kingdom noble. The charismatic Guozhi and his FEU had been attacking the occupying troops ever since.

Biyu was a lower born friend of Guozhi and became the military leader where he was the political one. It turned out she could be quite friendly. She explained the history and running of the FEU as well as a few of the more prominent members.

"Those are cool gauntlets," Sokka complimented, pointing out the jade encrusted weapons.

Biyu smiled, "What? These silly things? They were Guozhi's idea. Check this out!" She flexed and a black, jagged blade was summoned from the end of the brace. It wasn't that long, but it looked like it could cut down steel like ripe wheat. She flexed again and the blade disappeared again. "Guozhi's got some overdramatic name for them, of course. Obsidian Swords or something. I think he's trying to turn me into the poster girl for the Union or something."

"What are they made of?" Katara asked.

Biyu chuckled, "They're just some rocks painted black. Like I said, overdramatic. But they sure do look dangerous. Guozhi's been trying to use psychological warfare and propaganda against the Empire the way they've been using it against us."

"So you're an earthbender?" Aang asked, interested.

"For all the good it does me. I'm no good at earthbending, except for the simple stuff like this…" She drew and retracted her stone blade a few times. "But I'm pretty good with a sword, so I can still fight just fine as long as I have these. And that's why in all this suffering, I'm still content. Because my skills can still help… er, the Earth Kingdom."

The conversation might have continued, but the sounds of a battle could be heard ahead. Biyu drew her blades and immediately rushed ahead. Whether or not Biyu was as strong as she looked was yet to be determined, but she was clearly fast. Almost superhuman! The other FEU soldiers readied their weapons and followed. It wasn't hard to figure out that the sounds of battle were coming from the FEU camp, so Aang, Sokka, and Katara readied themselves for battle and followed.

The battle on the other side of the next hill was intense. The FEU camp was holding out against the Imperial assault, but they were hopelessly outnumbered. This seemed to be a common problem for the last vestiges of the Earth Kingdom. The fresh troops on the Earth Kingdom side threw what seemed a forgone conclusion into doubt, however. Especially Biyu. It looked like someone had lit a fire under her as she put out more than a few with her stone swords as she fought her way towards the interior of the camp.

No quarter was given by either side. Aang made a point of joining in as quickly as possible just to keep the body count from climbing any higher. The FEU troops and earthbenders didn't think to question Aang's credentials as the Avatar when he blew away a dozen firebenders in one attack. Sokka and Katara joined in as well and the tide of the battle turned. Aang on his own made up for the discrepancy in numbers.

This was also the first time Aang noticed a familiar-seeming firebender. Had that one firebender who vowed revenge on the Avatar back in that little town chased Aang all that way? Well, if he did, he'd have to keep chasing. Even without the none too subtle battle cry of "I've got you this time", Aang would have sensed and deflected his attack in more than enough time.

The fight was already winding down by the time Aang and the others arrived. With them helping the fight was over in just a few minutes. But the commotion didn't settle down after the battle, though. Everyone rushed to a hut in the center of camp. Aang and his friends pushed their way through the crowd to see Biyu clutching a boy about her age in her arms who was rapidly bleeding to death.

* * *

Another in a long line of "better than passable" for me. I will absolutely not complain about seeing the good enough mark safely behind me! (If not far behind…) I like the characters and ideas I've set up here. I've got a lot of ideas for the third act of the story, which had been an annoying gray area for me up until now. I have high hopes for this story.


	13. The FEU pt 2

Last minute(ish) update again. Hope I have enough time since stuff irl might cause a bit of a problem. Fortunately, this might just be an easy and exciting. One can only hope.

* * *

"Guozhi! Guozhi, stay with me!" A member of the FEU rushed over to the two teens and pulled Biyu away from their severely wounded leader. Guozhi had dark brown hair and a small frame. Aang and the Water Tribe siblings could see he was a bit shorter than Biyu. His eyes were clenched closed in pain, his breath shallow. His face was ghostly white and covered in blood. Though, his face had to have been whiter than normal.

The FEU member, a doctor, started dressing Guozhi's wound. He had a bad gash in his side from a spear strike. The would be assassin lay unconscious nearby. He was detained by a few of the warriors and dragged off with the rest of the handful of prisoners. The doctor attending to Guozhi asked for some space and the rest of the soldiers that remained ushered the kids out.

Biyu did nothing to conceal her anger. "Argh! I _knew_ something was going to happen tonight! I chased the wrong hunch! Idiot!"

"Hey, you saved your friend, didn't you?" Sokka interrupted her self-deprecating rant.

"But it could still slip away…!"

"You did your best," Aang cut in next, "that's all anyone could ask." That seemed to help Biyu, if only a little. The four of them set out to help fixing the damage the battle had done to the camp. Most of the tents had collapsed and many of the stores had been burned, ransacked, or just thrown about in the scuffle.

With the camp's head doctor working to save Guozhi and several other FEU soldiers and benders in just as dire need of medical attention, Katara and Aang found their extra pair of hands helping the injured. Sokka ended up somehow taking charge of much of the logistics as the camp tried to pull together what supplies they could save and take stock of the situation.

Things didn't look hopeless, but it certainly wasn't cheery. That seemed to be an unfortunately common assessment of the FEU's situation. The biggest problem wasn't the camp. It could be moved once the injured could and any important supplies could be replaced with some work. The real problem Sokka was seeing the more he helped was a lack of people. Though as much as the battle hadn't helped, it wasn't exactly a new problem.

"That's been the story of this resistance since the start," Biyu lamented when Sokka asked about it. "It's not like there aren't enough people who are willing to fight for the Earth Kingdom, but the Empire cracks down on that sort of thing. We're pretty much constantly outnumbered."

"Is there anything we can do to get your numbers up?" Sokka asked.

"You mean, you three specifically?" Biyu asked.

"We can't stay here forever," Katara said, "We have to get Aang to the North Pole to learn waterbending. But if we could get your numbers up, we could go a long way to help you quickly and get on our way."

She mulled that over. "Well," she started, "I guess we have been planning an attack on a prisoner camp not far from here… But even with the Avatar, I don't think there's anything the three of you can do. And it's not like we can spare anyone right now." She gestured to around the activity in camp. "I'd got with you, but I have to stay here and defend the camp if the Empire attacks again."

"You should go with them…" a strained, low voice rose up behind them. The group turned to see Guozhi on his feet barely. If it were possible, his face was even paler as he limbed along to the chagrin of the doctor that had saved him. Biyu's face lit up when she saw him, even in his condition. She took a half step toward him, but decided against hugging him. Lest she open his wounds, of course. He bowed as deeply as he dared with his injury to Aang, "It's an honor to meet you in person, Avatar."

"Nice to meet you too," Aang smiled, bowing as well.

Guozhi turned to Biyu. "The Imperials are cowards, they won't attack again anytime soon after they got turned back so handily. I'd go with you," she grinned and motioned to the doctor next to him, "But unfortunately I'm not allowed to strain myself for a while."

"If we free the prisoners, will you have what you need to fight back against the Fire Empire?" Sokka asked.

"It's not going to free the Earth Kingdom by next week," he replied, "But it'd definitely be a step in the right direction. And I'm sure you could pull it off if Biyu goes with you. She's the best swordfighter in the entire Earth Kingdom."

Biyu blushed at the comment, "You know that's not true…" She got serious again as she spotted a bit of red peeking through his bandages. "And besides, I can't leave you like this."

"The Empire won't make a move again by the time you get back, so don't worry. And besides, I'm not helpless myself. I took out my fair share."

Biyu didn't look convinced. She poked him as lightly as she could in the side and it was still enough to make him flinch in pain. "Look out Fire Empire, Guozhi the Invulnerable is here!" she teased.

"So I'm not at full strength," he shrugged in return, "I'm still not a pushover. I had a good teacher, after all…"

Biyu groaned, "Fine. I'll go with the Avatar." She turned to the doctor, "Shun, make sure he doesn't do something foolish."

"Ma'am."

"So where is this prison camp?" Katara asked.

"East of here," Guozhi answered right away. "And be warned, this mission won't be easy. I know you can do it, but the margin for error will be very slim. Please be careful." Aang assured him that they would and the group made their way to Appa.

It was about a day's flight to the prison camp, but due to the nighttime battle and the rapid onset of an adrenalin crash, the group decided to make camp along the way to rest up. They made it to their destination late the next afternoon, rested and ready for battle. Though no amount of rest would prepare the four teens for a direct assault on the bastion they spied from behind a low ridge. The camp had four metal walls with guard towers at each of the corners and seemed to have a small army guarding it. Breaking any number of people out of there would be a feat.

"It's not as bad as it looks," Biyu assured, trying to sound as convincing as she could. "We have a double agent on the inside, and most of the guards here are trainees. Still, there's over a hundred of them."

"I'd sure like to get a look inside myself…" Sokka said, looking for a hole in the defenses.

"Maybe if I made a big tornado or something it would distract the guards long enough for us to sneak in?" Aang suggested.

"No," Sokka shook, "We don't want the guards to know the Avatar is here. It'll just get them fired up."

"Maybe you can use your earthbending, Biyu," Katara suggested.

"Me?" Biyu asked, "But my earthbending is terrible."

"It only has to make a lot of noise and movement," Katara noted.

"Well… I guess I could send a fissure out away from us around a wall. But it wouldn't be very big."

"Come on, guys!" Sokka interrupted, "Fired up? Get it?"

There was a pause for a beat or two. "Oh, I get it," Aang said, though more with the satisfaction of solving a riddle than getting a joke.

Katara and Biyu giggled at Sokka. "Did you come up with that all by yourself?" Biyu asked.

"Every one of my jokes is a one hundred percent Sokka original!" he said proudly.

Another round of laughter. "It shows," Biyu said through gasps as she caught her breath.

Sokka decided to take that as a compliment and move on. His plan was fairly simple. Using the cover of the ling shadows of the twilight and the low hills surrounding the prison walls, the group snuck up to the wall opposite the setting sun. Biyu launched a bursting trail of rock around the corner and along the wall. It wasn't very big, but it was loud. Once they were sure that it had gotten the attention of all the guards, Aang carried his three friends over the tall wall one by one with his airbending. Inside, the group found an empty store room to take shelter in from the rush of activity of the guards. Step 1: get inside. Check. Now Aang and his friends just had to figure out what on earth to do next.

* * *

Eh, I've had worse. I'm actually considering slowing down the Off Center updates like I am with Endless Waltz since this is also in that same "only just okay" category too. Either way, I have the rest of this next chunk of the story pretty well planned out. Hopefully it will turn out at least better than this… We'll see.


	14. Prison Break pt 1

I hate it when I do this. This may be split up, but either way I hope I can pay off all I've set up so far. I don't know how long this little story element will last. I guess it depends how inspired it gets me. Let's find out, shall we?

* * *

The room Aang and his friends found themselves in seemed to be a large janitorial closet, filled with various cleaning supplies. Because sneaking into the armory would make it too easy. The four kids were all doing their best to catch their breath and quiet their hearts lest they be caught by the sound that was deafening to them. Once they finally calmed down enough, they took stock of their situation.

"Okay, we're in," Biyu noted. "Now what?"

"We need to gather some intelligence on the base, the guards, and the prisoners," Sokka explained, "Once we do that we can formulate a plan to get those prisoners out."

"Well, like I said, they've got quite a lot of guards, but they're not well trained. All our double agent, Shiyong, could get us on the prison itself is that there's a central courtyard that's used to house the prisoners. Unfortunately, the patrol routes in and out of the base are changed daily, so no help there."

Sokka's contemplative face lightened a little. "Maybe we can use that to our advantage," he said confidently. "If they change the rounds daily, than they have to be getting their new schedules at some point. Probably around now for most of them. This is our window to look around while some of them are distracted."

"It's risky," Katara warned, "We don't know for sure that the guards are changing now. And there's no way we can blend in. If we get caught it's all over."

"Then maybe we should split up," Aang suggested. "We'll cover more ground that way."

"Alright, we'll meet back here. Try not to get lost." With that the four of them peeked out the door of their hideaway to see if the coast was clear and split off into four different directions. Aang had always exceled at sneaking. Being an airbender, he had a naturally light step. And he could use his airbending to lift him up on to the ceiling or some scaffolding if a guard wandered by. He didn't have a particular destination in mind, as he wandered the base looking for something they could use to get the prisoners out. He also kept a mental map of the area so he could make it back to the closet.

Sokka happened to wander in the direction of the yard. As night began to set in, the prisoners were herded into a structure connecting to the large yard. Hadn't Biyu said that the prisoners were housed in the yard? Sokka figured that meant they spent nights out there too. It wouldn't be that hard to believe with how fair the winters were this far north and how cruel the Empire was. Still, the minor breakdown in communication aside, Sokka needed to get a look at the cells.

Katara found the living quarters and armory near their hiding place. She had quite a few close calls since many of the guards were just milling around the area. Fortunately most of them were off duty and not paying close enough attention to notice the intruder. Katara didn't really get a good chance to get a gage on their numbers, but she got a good long look at the weapons and supplies they had on hand before a tired group of soldiers trudged in and she had to hide. The place could double as a fortress if need be it seemed. Though it was the conversation she overheard between soldiers that was what was really of interest. _They_ were the same group that had attacked the FEU camp!

Biyu managed to sneak into the office that held much of the logistical information for the base. Watching from behind the grate of an air vent, Biyu listened in on guards getting their daily orders as a middle aged clerk in deep red robes addressed several dozen soldiers one by one. After the line finally started to die down, she prepared to make her move. After quietly removing the grate, she slipped down into the room and knocked out the clerk with a swift punch to the back of the head. After sorting through the wealth of information, she pocketed some of the important documents and slipped back into the air vent.

Aang was about to give up on finding something when he stumbled across the warden's office. He leaned when he heard who he assumed to be the warden talking to someone. "It doesn't matter if they don't know what they're getting into," the older voice said strongly, "If someone has snuck into my prison, I want them dealt with _now_."

"They'll get themselves caught soon enough, sir," another voice said. "They have to be the Free Earth Union rebels. Biyu is probably leading them. They think that the facility is full of untrained recruits! They'll make a mistake."

"I'm not doubting your work, Shiyong," the warden started. Aang's jaw dropped. Wasn't that the name of the double agent Biyu mentioned? He didn't sound like he was being very helpful to the cause telling the warden about Biyu! And was he saying that the prison _wasn't_ filled with recruits? "You've done well to deceive the rebels for this long. But I don't want to let this prison be compromised by over confidence."

"Very well, then, sir," Shiyong started confidently. Aang peeked in through the cracked door and spied the spy; a tall, boney man with greasy black hair. He was smiling like a mink snake about to strike. "I'll be on the lookout for any spies in the prison. If I make contact, I'll tell them I have a plan to get the prisoners into a trap and just lead them to the guards."

"Do that," the warden agreed, "In the meantime, you'll have to get the location of their camp again so we can launch another attack. Speaking of overconfidence, we didn't even manage to take out a third of their forces in the last battle."

"Of course, sir."

Neither of them noticed the unnatural gust that brushed down the hallway as their eavesdropper disappeared.

Aang snuck back to the janitor's closet and slipped inside, finding all his friends had already returned. "Hey, Aang," Sokka greeted, "Bad news. The spy we've got in here never mentioned that the prisoners are held in cells overnight. There's nothing we can do until tomorrow morning."

"Worse news," Aang said with urgency, "The spy _isn't_ on our side. Shiyong told about Biyu and where the FEU camp is. He's been working with the Empire all along…!"

"What?!" Biyu demanded a little louder than she should have.

Suddenly the four kids jumped at the sound of pounding on the door, "Who's in there?! Unlock this door right now!"

* * *

Meh, short but good. I'm a little bit starting to pick up steam with this one again. This next bit is starting to take shape, so hopefully I can make something of it. And look at that! Done with time to spare! (This is a new thing for me…)


	15. Prison Break pt 2

I really wish I could respond to anonymous reviews because I finally got one that was good. And as for the greater world that this is all happening in, yes. There will be a greater role for the world itself. I love characters and I write for characters, but I wrote this story for the world, so it'll be the thing. I think this little arc is so character focused is why it doesn't look it though. So let's move this along, shall we?

* * *

"What do we do now?" Biyu panicked as someone outside banged on the door again.

"We can't fight them," Sokka thought out loud with similar worry. "We'll have to find a way to fool them."

"We can use these," Aang said as he and Katara tossed janitor uniforms at the others.

Another round of banging ended abruptly. "If you don't come out of there right now, we'll break down the door!" There was another pause before the door was flung open and an Imperial guard stumbled through shoulder first. The guard looked around to four very authentic-looking janitors. "What's going on here?"

"We're just getting the supplies for our shift," one of the janitors said quickly as the four of them tried to shuffle out as quickly as possible. The other guard blocked their path. "Sorry for the trouble. We're new.

"Well, why was the door locked?" the other guard asked suspiciously.

"It must have locked behind us when the door swung closed," another of the young janitors supplied quickly.

"It sounds pretty suspicious to me," the first guard said, "I've heard reports of spies in the base…"

"That sounds pretty strange. We haven't seen anything like that, but we'll keep an eye out!" With that the janitors slipped out around the guard at the door, who seemed convinced by their story.

"Come on Lee, let's just drop it," the guard at the door shrugged as the janitors disappeared around a corner. The other guard was inspecting the door's lock, "They were young. They were probably just taking a 'coffee break' if you know what I mean."

"You're such a letch," the other guard snarled before slamming the door of the janitor's closet closed, leaving him inside.

The guard outside flung the door back open after a stunned second later, "What was that for?!"

"To see if the door would lock on its own when it's shut," the first guard said, "Those kids lied to us!"

"I told you, they were probably-"

"They were the spies, you moron! Now hit the alarm!"

As Aang and the others jogged down the hallway, a Klaxon alarm started sounding. They ducked into another secluded room as the guard activity intensified as everyone in the prison got to their positions.

"Well, now what?" Aang asked.

"They know we're here now," Sokka thought, "There's no point in trying to sneak anyone out."

"I say we go for a full on riot!" Biyu suggested.

"Wait, we should think about this first!" Sokka warned.

"What if the prisoners won't or can't fight back?" Katara asked.

"Trust me," Biyu assured, "I know most of the people imprisoned here. If they're still breathing, they'll be glad to fight."

"It's still a big gamble," Sokka warned again.

"We don't really have a choice now. I say we go for it!" Aang agreed.

Sokka sighed, "Well, I guess I'm out voted. Let's do it. Biyu, can you get through the cell doors with your earthbending?"

"I-I'm not sure," she said nervously, "If I made a mistake I could bring the ceiling down one someone…"

"What about your swords?" Katara asked.

"They're just regular stone painted black, they're not as strong as they look…"

"If I froze the locks to make them more brittle, would it work then?"

"You can do that?" Biyu thought it over for a moment, "That might just work. Where are the cells?"

"Follow me," Sokka nodded toward the door. The four of them rushed through the facility toward the prison yard. A few guards brushed past them, but they still wore their disguises, so no one stopped them.

It wasn't until they arrived at the small building that held the prisoners at night that someone bothered to stop them. A firebender and spear wielding guard fell into battle stances when they saw four strangers approach the detention block. "Halt!" one of them called.

Biyu leapt into the air and drew her blades before kicking the two guards in the chest and knocking them through the door. The others continued toward the door, doubling their pace when they heard the sounds of metal against stone. Katara, spying a water barrel next to the door, pulled it out with her waterbending and brought it inside in a big bubble above her. Inside, Biyu had already engaged one of the guards, more rushing toward her. She saw the others arrive and the water Katara was holding. She ducked and Katara lashed out with the water, soaking the guards and knocking most over. The ones who held their ground or got up quickly were descended upon by the invaders. Sokka's boomerang wacked a few in the head, knocking them out. Aang also sent a few ill-advised attackers face first into bars or walls with his airbending. All the guards finally went down to the cheers of the rowdy prisoners.

Katara took some of the water she used on the guards and splashed the locks with it, freezing them instantly. "Let's hope this works…" she said as Biyu cocked one of her katar back smashed at the lock of the first cell. The ice shattered, and while the metal underneath looked as if it had taken little damage, the door swung open all the same.

It took minutes for all the cells to open. By the time the next group of guards arrived, the prisoners outnumbered the jailors in the yard. It was still a tough fight with several firebenders and the area became a battlefield. The longer the fight went on, the worse it started to look. There were only fifty or so guards, but it was all the prisoners and their saviors could do just to survive their attacks.

A figure rushed through the crowd to near the front where Aang and his friends were fighting. Shiyong spotted Biyu and rushed over to her as she backed off from the front lines. "Thank goodness I found you, Biyu!" he said as he gripped her shoulder. She turned and swung her swords the instant she saw his face. "Hey! It's me!"

He backed away from the furious-looking Biyu as she advanced slowly toward him, "I know it's you," the growled, "I also know you're the one that's been giving our position away to the Empire every time we move our camp!"

"I-I can explain!"

"Explain to these!" Biyu slashed at the traitor, but he was quick enough to get out of the way. He broke away from the melee and into an enclosed part of the facility, Biyu in hot pursuit.

The battle in the yard raged for almost forty minutes without a break. It wasn't clear who was winning, but the prisoners were gaining nothing just staying there. The outlook was starting to grow bleak for anyone paying attention until the sound of earthbending could be heard outside. "It's the rebels! They're attacking right now!" one of the guards called down into the yards.

In the facility, Biyu finally caught up with Shiyong. Unfortunately, he had several guards at his back as he looked at her smugly. She turned to try to get back to the yard, but more guards appeared behind her.

* * *

Another short but good one. I'm a little iffy on the dialogue heavy start, but I'm okay with it. It's so annoying having so many stories and trying to work on all of them. This would probably seem so much more fast paced if there weren't five weeks between updates. I may have to mess around with my schedule again soon, but that's for another time. Now I get to wait for two or three people to tell me this is flawless and piss me off with pandering compliments I don't want. Yippee~ Well, hopefully that anon will give me another good review…


	16. Prison Break pt 3

I'm really cutting it close with this one. Between New Year's and my lack of motivation for this story, I've put off working on it for far too long. This should be a pretty good chapter all the same, though, as it should wrap up this little story arc for a while. Hopefully I can get it all done in time.

* * *

The giant metal gates of the prison complex crashed open after the repetitive battering of the FEU's earthbenders. A flood of fresh, well equipped troops rushed into the facility, many into the courtyard. The battle almost instantly turned in favor of the FEU with the guards now hopelessly outnumbered and surrounded in an open, flat area on all sides. Some of the firebenders and solders held out a little longer, but most surrendered as soon as the FEU troops arrived in the courtyard.

Aang, Sokka, and Katara all breathed a sigh of relief as the fighting stopped and the Imperial troops were detained. To their surprise, Guozhi jogged up to them, offering them a grateful, if pained bow. "I'm glad we came all this way," Guozhi said as he rose, "I had a feeling you would need help, so I brought a squad of our troops along and laid in wait."

"Well, thanks for that," Sokka said gratefully, "It was looking pretty bad back there for a second. And I can't _always_ be the one to save the day after all!"

Everyone rolled their eyes at Sokka's comment, but let it slide. "Well, were it not for your courageous actions, this monumental victory would never have been possible. You've saved many brave souls today," Guozhi praised, Aang and his friends humbly accepting. "By the way," he said a moment later, looking around the clearing battlefield, "Where is Biyu? I have to give her my thanks as well."

Katara and Sokka looked around for a moment, also noticing the swordswoman's absence. It took Aang a second, but he supplied the answer, "I saw her running after Shiyong toward the barracks during the battle."

"Oh, of course! I have to thank Shiyong as well!" Guozhi smiled, "He perhaps had the hardest…"

"No, you don't understand! Shiyong has betrayed you!" Katara informed worriedly.

Guozhi's already pale face grew even whiter, "But if he's on their side, that means she could be in danger!" Before anyone could stop him, Guozhi was off like a shot. Aang and the others gave chase, but he quickly outpaced them. It was like his body had forgotten that it had been injured. Guozhi had no idea where he was going as he ran through the main structure of the facility. It took him some minutes, but he finally heard brisk footsteps not too far away. He was on a walkway above the main floor, so he looked down to find the source of the noise.

Biyu was surrounded by what remained of the prison's guards, hands tied behind her back. Shiyong was walking confidently ahead of her as the fair sized group made their escape. "Why would you do this?" Biyu growled at Shiyong, "Why did you betray all of us?"

Shiyong spared her a cocky glance over his shoulder, "I just chose the winning side, my dear."

"The winning side!?"

"Can't you see the writing on the walls? The Earth Kingdom is dead! Already dead! Why fight the Empire when you can be a part of it? Reap the benefits of it?" Shiyong chuckled, giving Biyu another snide glance, "And thanks to simpletons like you, I can elevate myself even farther and faster by simply turning you in to the proper authorities."

Biyu seethed at the man – no, the beetlesnake – before her, "You greedy, cowardly…!"

"I really couldn't care less what you think of me," Shiyong hummed back. He gave a wicked chuckle at the next thought, "It won't matter what you think of anything after we put you to death for crimes against the Empire. I wonder what _your_ people will think of your 'Free Earth Union' once its poster girl is executed? I'm sure it'll do wonders for your recruitment." Another cruel laugh set Biyu's blood aboil.

"I'd gladly die for Guozhi's cause!"

"You're about too."

The group walked in silence a few more steps before Biyu noticed movement above them. "Behind you!" Thanks to Biyu's warning, Gouzhi was able to parry the sword aimed at his back. He had drawn his own blade to jump down and save Biyu (no matter how foolhardy that seemed), but now he had his own troubles. Another guard trying to make his escape noticed Guozhi stalking up on Shiyong and his entourage from above and engaged Gouzhi in earnest to aid his allies. Gouzhi blocked a second sword stroke, but the force of the impact shoved him up against the railing along the walkway. The handrail hit his side and his wound exploded with pain. Gouzhi dropped as the guard readied the killing blow.

Biyu reacted instinctively, stomping her foot on the ground. The entire building rumbled as a giant, jagged pillar of stone rose up from the ground and smashed a hole in the ceiling. Not only did the pillar cut the rope tying her as it rose, but the rumbling knocked the guard attacking Guozhi off his feet causing to drop his sword. Biyu ran up the almost sheer column of rock, leaving footprints in it as she went, ending by kicking off it and tackling the stunned guard. The guard on the upper walkway was knocked out, but the guards on ground level didn't fare much better, the pillar of earth shattering and raining debris on them. It didn't take them long to recover, though and the firebenders took aim at the two teens on the walkway.

Biyu threw her body over Guozhi, expecting the heat of a half dozen angry firebenders to be upon her at any moment, but it never came. Instead, a whoosh and a splash, followed by the clanking of metal on metal prompted Guozhi and Biyu to look up. Aang, Katara, and Sokka were leading the charge against the remaining guards, all of whom surrendered as the FEU troops and freed prisoners arrived.

Biyu and Guozhi breathed a sigh of relief. Biyu looked down at Guozhi, trying (and failing) to look angry, "What are you doing here? You could have been killed just now!"

"I…" Guozhi tried to keep the dignified look on his face, but he couldn't. With a defeated smile he said, "I was hoping that this time I would get a chance to save you for once."

Biyu smiled and helped him up. "You did."

Katara looked at Shiyong with disgust as he was dragged away to be locked up with the rest of the guards. "I can't believe someone could just betray you like that…"

"For every one like him, there are a hundred more like us," one of the freed prisoners said with a grateful pat on her back.

"And thanks to you, many more of those good people will now have the chance to take up the fight again!" Guozhi said a bit later as the newly bolstered FEU began work on appropriating the facility for their own use. "The Earth Kingdom owes you an immeasurable debt."

Aang shifted, proud but uncomfortable, "Well, I do what I can."

"What are your plans now?" Sokka asked, noticing the Earthbenders fixing up the damage they had caused by replacing metal with stone.

"This is going to be our new base of operations," Guozhi said proudly. "For the time being."

"What about the Empire's flying machines?"

"This is an important strategic location," Guozhi explained, "The Empire won't dare level this place if they don't have to. We'll have to move eventually, but in the meantime, our numbers will be safe here. Oh, and," Guozhi gestured toward a nearby stable, "we took the liberty of bringing in your Sky Bison. As much as I'd like for you to stay, I know you have other places that you need to be, Avatar."

Aang thanked them and took off, leaving the FEU stronger than they ever had been. Perhaps there was hope to set things right after all.

* * *

In line with the last one. I'd like it to be longer, of course, but me and my laziness means time is a factor. Well, now I have no idea what to do next with this story. Good thing I have a long time to plan! (And pity I won't…)


	17. Order pt 1

I'm really cutting it close with this one but I can't seem to care. This is probably my least favorite story and I've been tired lately. I'm going to take a break after this since my fanfiction writing is starting to become work. And really, that's the last thing I need. So yeah, this is probably going to be pretty bad, but oh well.

* * *

After helping the Earth Kingdom rebels, Aang and company made good time toward the North Pole. They still had to be careful about where they chose to camp since the Empire was mobilizing more and more of their forces. Aang and his friends had caused more of a stir than even they knew. Riots were breaking out in occupied towns, Imperial troops were being attacked, and even towns and cities long accepting Imperial rule were starting to resist. The iron grip of the Empire held fast, but there was a sense of renewed optimism among the citizens of the former Earth Kingdom.

It was still an uphill battle for the Avatar, of course. Even in the sky they weren't safe with the Empire's airships. Appa was faster and more mobile than even the smaller flying machines the Empire employed, but with enough of them patrolling the skies, eventually they would get caught. The good news was that they were relatively safe to make camp as long as they stayed away from any large population centers. Many troops were being sucked in to the scattered towns of the former Earth Kingdom that were rising up, so there were fewer to look for the Avatar.

A week went by and other than the occasional close call from passing airships there were no incidents. Aang, Sokka, and Katara all had the chance to catch their breath. Appa was about to descend as the sun did the same off to the side, but something caught Aang's eye. It wasn't uncommon to see pillars of smoke billowing up on the horizon in the former Earth Kingdom. After all, there were many firebenders living there now. Not just occupiers, but since the ascension of Fire Lord Azula, many families had moved there. Some by choice, many as a result of exile from the homeland. The influx of people was starting to cause major supply issues, especially in the cities popular among war refugees and the displaced Imperial citizens. What was actually going on in the Fire Empire herself wasn't fully known. There were rumors ranging from near constant insurgencies to the Fire Lord of the West dealing with a bout of nearly crippling insanity.

The smoke Aang saw wasn't a house fire lit by a careless young firebender. It was a funeral pyre for an entire town. Someone was razing a village, and Aang couldn't allow that. He yanked on Appa rains and the Sky Bison banked towards the smoke in the distance.

"Aang, where are you going?" Sokka asked as he noticed the billowing black cloud come into view.

"That village is in trouble. I have to help the people there," Aang explained. He had set his focus purely on the village and was only responding to Sokka in passing. The siblings exchanged looks. It was unlike the airbender to be so distant.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Katara asked, "It could be dangerous."

"She's right, the town could be filled with Imperial troops," Sokka agreed.

"That doesn't matter. I have to do whatever I can to make a difference." Aang turned to his friends. The Water Tribe siblings both expected to see the stormy expression he wore whenever he saw the things the Empire was so well known for. Instead they were greeted with a confident smile, "And I _can_ make a difference."

Katara smiled back at him. "I'm glad to hear you say that," she admitted, "I wasn't disagreeing. I just think we should be careful. Let's see what happened to the town before we go flying in."

Aang's smile grew brighter, "Good idea. I'll set Appa down in that clearing over there." He leaned forward and patted his big friend on his fuzzy head, "You should be safe there while we check out the town."

A few seconds into Appa's decent, Sokka spoke up. "For the record, I _was_ disagreeing with you. I think this is a terrible idea." Sokka got a wicked glare from his sister, but he either didn't notice or didn't care.

A few moments later Appa touched down in the clearing. The area was only lightly wooded, but provided enough cover that the Sky Bison was unlikely to be seen. The group hadn't gotten a good look at the town from the air, so they didn't really know what to expect as the started the short walk to its edge. The sparse trees left enough open sky to follow the smoke trail in the fading light, yet enough cover to remain hidden with the aid of the coming night.

There were no soldiers in the woods, so the kids made good time as they got closer. Finally, the first structure of the town came into view; a simple stone wall. The curvature of the wall and the lack of any kind of masonry meant that it was probably made by earthbenders. Not that the wall seemed to have done them much good. It was clear even from the tree line a few feet away that at least half of the fair sized town was on fire. And from the sound of it and the way the smoke cloud was growing, more buildings were being lit up.

After a quick glance around to make sure there was no one to see them, the three rushed up to the wall and prepared to climb it to seem what was going on inside the town behind it. The wall was fairly impressive, about eight and a half feet tall and totally uniform. Katara and Aang both used a little bending to give themselves the boost they needed to peek over the edge. After a second of giving the town a first glance, they heard Sokka give a hushed, "Hey! A little help, here?" The two lifted the non-bender up and the three begun their surveillance.

The town looked a mess. It was ransacked, and definitely full of firebenders as the destruction of houses and businesses creped forward. The town was large enough to obscure the crowd of firebenders, but many voices could be heard as a mass of people approached. Many of the voices were panicked cries for help or mercy, but one stood out to Aang. It had been a while since he had heard the voice, but he knew all too well.

The Avatar growled the name, only the desire to remain hidden tempering his volume, "Zuko…!"

* * *

Yeah, pretty meh. I've probably done worse and I'm actually starting to see this story take vague shape, but yeah. Not really much to say here, so see you later.


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